Scott Isaacs - The Leptin Boost Diet: Unleash Your Fat-Controlling Hormones for Maximum Weight Loss

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I thank all my patients, past and present, for the knowledge they have given me about the multiple faces of hormonal balance and imbalance, and the privilege of being involved in their care. I also thank the staff at Intelligent Health Center, Janet Baldwin, R. N., Jennifer Kotze, Melva Baker, R. N., M.S., F.N.P.B.C., Beth Larker, Andrea Floyd, Shundalyn Vanderhorst, Deborah English, Luciana Neto, Rebecca Coelho M.S., R.D., L.D., and Fran Ritter, R.N. And I thank all the nurses in the diabetes units at Northside Hospital and Crawford Long Hospital for taking care of all my patients.

An extra special thanks goes to Jon Neihaus of Health Management Resources (HMR), whose insights and inspirations have helped our staff help our patients lose (and keep off) thousands of pounds. Thanks to Dean Felder, my trainer, who has kept me motivated to get in my PA (physical activity) so early in the morning. Thanks to Kalina Haynes and Tiffany Cochran of WXIA in Atlanta. Thanks to Kat Carney from CNN Headline News. Thanks to Julie Bitton, Tara Levine, and Mia Butler from TBSs Movie and a Makeover. Thanks to Allison Winn Scotch and Hallie Levine for the interviews and including my opinions in their articles in Mens Health, Womens Health, Prevention, and other magazines. Thanks to Celia Rocks, Robyn Spizman, and Willy Spizman. I thank Lauren Handy of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists. And I thank my friends and colleagues Shaun Corbin, M.D., Randy Cleveland, M.D., David Shore, M.D., Karla Shore, M.D., Tom Flood, M.D., Victor Silverman, M.D., Spencer Welch, M.D., Victoria Musey, M.D., David Arkin, M.D., Ola Odugbesan, M.D., Lewis Blevins, M.D., David Robertson, M.D., Tony Karpas, M.D., Kate Wheeler, M.D., Jim Christy, M.D., Chip Reed, M.D., Sabrina Rene, M.D., Jason Berner, M.D., Neil Shulman, M.D., Jason Holbrook, M.D., Todd Miller, M.D., Alan Miller, M.D., Dennis Steed, M.D., Judson Black, M.D., Joshua Barzilay, M.D., Guillermo Umpierrez, M.D., Bruce Trippe, M.D., Lee Padove, M.D., Andrew Golde, M.D., Kelly Ahn, M.D., Akin Ayodeji, M.D., Len Thaler, M.D., Jonathon Weinstein, M.D., Lee Oberman, M.D., Mitchell Blass, M.D., and Robyn Levy, M.D.

I thank my family and friends Howard Isaacs, Sheryle Isaacs, Steve Isaacs, Beverly Isaacs, Dick Isaacs, Marilyn Isaacs, Andy Rothberg, Sue Rothberg, Lorin Rothberg, Go Nodar, Manny Nodar, Bobbie Christmas, Jack Teitelman, Larry Teitelman, David Teitel - man, Suzi Teitelman, Barbara Teitelman, Margaret Farrelly, Aaron Farrelly, Joyce Young, Brianna Young, John Little, IV, John Little, Sr., Stephen Gargan, Brenda Gargan, Rebecca Gargan, Laura Gargan, Jon Gunderson, Valerie Gunderson, Mark Luecke, Cynthia Cook, Travis Cook, Lori Johns, and Chase Johns.

Finally, I especially thank my wife, Fiona, who has put up with my working on the book at nights and on weekends and has given me the love and inspiration I needed to make this book into a reality.

Atlanta, Georgia

The key to achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight forever is to boost your leptin. Boosting leptin leads to a lifetime of good health. Boosting leptin is all about hormonal balance.

But what is hormonal balance?

Hormonal balance is a fairly vague term. In the world of health, though, its like the Holy Grail. If you ask a gynecologist, hell tell you its the female hormonesestrogen and progesterone. If you ask a urologist, shell tell you its all about testosterone. If you ask diabetes experts, theyll tell you its about balancing food and insulin. I take a different approach, for I believe that hormonal balance is about having all your hormones balanced. This is because all your hormones affect one another. Its one big circle, in a manner of speaking. When one hormone is out of whack, it produces profound effects on other hormones, which in turn change others. They are all connected. Hormonal balance means having the perfect amount of each and every hormone. It means having a body thats both healthy and resilient.

Hormones are your bodys chemical messengers. They are the way your body communicates with itself. Being hormonally balanced means that you have gotten your bodys communication system back on track. Good communication simply means having a healthy metabolism. If you are overweight or out of shape, that, in turn, means that your body has a communication problem.

Achieving hormonal balance by boosting leptin, adiponectin, and other fat cell hormones improves just about every aspect of your life. Your body will be lean and efficient. You wont feel excessive hunger or cravings, and your metabolism will work to keep your body at a healthy weight. You will feel more energetic, but without stress or anxiety. Your mood will be elevated. You will have deep, restful, rejuvenating sleep every night. You will have a sharp mind. Hormonal balance means feeling better and living longer.

As you read this book, youll see how leptin, adiponectin, and other fat cell hormones are a vital part of hormonal balance. Problems with these hormones cause hormonal imbalance, resulting in increased appetite, slower metabolism, and fat deposited in harmful areas like the belly and inside your muscles and organs. Balancing these fat cell hormones is critical for the proper functioning of your entire body.

Fat cell hormones are the hormonal link between your body and your brain. Of course, these hormones are affected by all your hormones and they, in turn, affect each other. When your fat cell hormones are balanced, all your hormones are balanced and your body can function at its best. And leptin is the key to fat cell hormonal balance.

When the body becomes obese, leptin doesnt work very well. Thats called leptin resistance. You can give leptin a boost in two waysby increasing production of leptin and by improving the way leptin works in the body. The Leptin Boost Diet is designed with both in mind. This book will teach you how to boost leptin by improving leptin resistance and enhancing leptin production. This will help you achieve hormonal balance and a healthy weight.

The discovery of leptin in 1994 was one of the more significant breakthroughs in the history of obesity research. The name leptin comes from the Greek word leptos, which means thin. Leptin is a hormone made by fat cells that tells your body to stop eating. The fat cells in your body work together to function like a gland, just like the adrenal gland, thyroid gland, or pituitary gland. Leptin works in your brain to control your appetite and metabolism. Leptin has led to the understanding that fat cells, also called adipocytes, are dynamic cells that produce hormones responsible for body weight, energy balance, metabolism, appetite, and food cravings.

In the past, scientists viewed fat as simply tissue that stores excess calories in the body. When obesity research began to be conducted, fat was thought of as an innocent bystander. But leptin has shattered our earlier perceptions of the fat cell. Scientists now understand that fat is much more than just an inert storage depot. Fat is a dynamic endocrine machine that is the critical regulator of your appetite, metabolism, and body weight.