In the process of
storing the HTML code
for this blog, yesterday I read an
entry
dating from just after we returned from Greece in 2019:
On 8 Feb 2019 I weighed 83.0 kg and on 15 March I weighed 82.8 kg: I
thought that this was the heaviest I have ever been but checking my
records, I see that on 4 Oct 2013 I apparently weighed 85 kg! Obviously I
must have done some dieting for my weight went down to 78.5 kg by 31 May
2014. This morning I weighed myself and apparently I now weigh only 77.9
kg which means that I have lost 5 kg since February. My BMI is now less
than 30 which is very good news. I wonder how much more weight I can lose
... and not regain.
Obviously that weight loss didn't last long, as by January 2023 I weighed
over 85 kg again; I now weigh 81.3 kg. Upon reading that blog, I asked
myself what has changed. The most obvious change is the diagnosis of primary
hyperaldosteronism that leads me to take certain medications. Exactly two
years ago, on the morning of my father's funeral, I saw an endicrinologist
who changed some of my blood pressure medication and started me on something
new. Almost overnight I saw my weight increase by 2 kg!
The book 'The fatburn fix' starts off with short case histories of several
patients of the book's author, Dr Catherine Shanahan, and how their
situations improved after changing their diets (no vegetable fats, more
saturated fat). I suspect that those case histories display what is known as
the selection bias, aka cherry picking the data (see section 4.5 of my
doctoral thesis). One does not read about the people who followed Dr
Shanahan's recommendations but did not see any improvement. Anyway, this got
me wondering as to what might have caused the hyperaldosteronism; presumably at some time I
didn't have it, although I don't subscribe to the notion that this hormone
imbalance appeared the moment it was diagnosed.
Obviously the direct cause of hyperaldosteronism is too much aldosterone and
not enough renin, but the question that I asked myself last night was what
caused the reduction (or failure) in renin production? This morning I
searched for the terms 'primary hyperaldosteronism metabolic syndrome', and
up popped several papers whose lead author is one Francesco Fallo from the
University of Padova. I couldn't access one very interesting paper of his, but I
did manage to download one entitled 'Prevalence and Characteristics of the
Metabolic Syndrome in Primary Aldosteronism'1 from 2006. I shall
read this with interest. I also intend to send it to my nephrologist: in my
appointment with him last week, I asked him whether metabolic syndrome has
any effect on primary hyperaldosteronism (or vice versa). He wasn't aware of any such
effect.
My hypothesis is that my prediabetic state from 2019 caused some level of
metabolic syndrome that put metaphorical pressure on my body, causing the
suppression of renin, causing a rise in blood pressure, causing .....
According to this hypothesis, if I can reduce the level of metabolic
syndrome then I should see an improvement in my blood pressure (this has
definitely happened) that may lead to the removal of the renin suppression
that will lead to .... I see this as a cycle as displayed in the following
graphic
If the text is illegible, it reads Lower blood sugar > Relieve metabolic syndrome > Relieve renin
suppression > Reduce hyperaldosteronism > Relax dietary restrictions
for potassium > Lower blood sugar.
That's the hypothesis. How can I test this? I will continue my dietary
improvements for another few months, hopefully with a few more monthly blood
tests, then I will ask for a repeat renin/aldosterone test. If these results
show an improvement then I could reduce the dosage of spironolactone, that
increases the level of potassium in my blood. Obviously, I require the
participation of my GP and possibly the neprologist, but I have to do the
work (i.e. improve my diet).
To think that all this started from an
innocent question
three months ago as to how the lemon-line flavoured water that the kibbutz
shop used to sell (they have yet to restock) could advertise itself as
having zero calories.
This day in history:
|
|
|
Title | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| 43 |
|
The Equatorial Stars | King Crimson, Van der Graaf Generator, Peter Hammill, Eno, Equitorial stars, Paul Simon |
| 378 |
|
Locarno log (4) | Holiday, Switzerland |
| 496 |
|
That's why God made the radio | The Beach Boys |
| 961 |
|
New smartphone | Mobile phone |
[1] Fallo, F., Veglio, F., Bertello, C., Sonino, N., Della Mea, P., Ermani,
M., Rabbia, F., Federspil, G. and Mulatero, P. (2006): "Prevalence and
characteristics of the metabolic syndrome in primary aldosteronism", The
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 91(2), pp.454-459.
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