Fat men snore, become depressed, complain of decreased potency, pain in the heart and joints. To solve all these problems, you can go to different doctors for a long time and take many medicines. Or you can just lose weight.

How is male obesity different from female obesity? Why do men get fat? How can they lose weight? These and other questions are answered by Mariyat Mukhina, an acupuncturist, candidate of medical sciences and the author of more than 40 scientific papers on the author’s method of treating overweight.

– Mariyat, how common is overweight in men?

In my experience, among people who seek treatment for obesity, men make up about 15-20%.

How is male obesity different from female obesity?

If in women fat is usually deposited below – on the hips and buttocks, then for men the abdominal type of fat deposition is characteristic, when fat accumulates inside the abdomen.

– Is it worse or better?

It’s worse for health. The enlarged abdomen supports the diaphragm, because of this, the heart changes its position – instead of lying obliquely, it lies horizontally. As a result, that area adjacent to the diaphragm, the posterior wall of the myocardium, is not adequately supplied with blood. It can even be seen on the ECG. Thus, the abdominal type of fat deposition increases the risk of a heart attack.

In addition, in men, unlike women, fat tends to accumulate in interfascial spaces. Especially often it is deposited in the neck, which provokes snoring and sleep apnea syndrome – stopping breathing during sleep.

– Sounds ominous…

In a healthy person, the permissible number of pauses in breathing during sleep is up to five per hour. But I had an obese patient who had 130 apneas – about twice a minute! This is extremely dangerous. I can give a lot of examples when night stops of breathing led to death.

– And what to do?

With sleep apnea syndrome, a man must constantly turn over in his sleep. And of course, he needs to lose weight urgently.

– Mariyat, obese men often complain about worsening erections. Excess weight really reduces potency?

Let’s start with the fact that subcutaneous adipose tissue is not just a layer of fat, it is also a depot of female sex hormones (estrogens). With obesity, the amount of estrogen in the body increases. And if for women such a state physiologically, it is unnatural for men. For them, the normal hormonal background is the predominance of androgens (male sex hormones).

When a man gains weight, his fat depot increases and, accordingly, the level of estrogen increases. At first, the body tries to compensate for this, begins to produce more androgens in the adrenal cortex and testicles, but gradually their capabilities are depleted, and the hormonal background shifts towards the predominance of estrogens.

– And then the potency decreases?

Excess estrogen affects the entire body as a whole. Firstly, gynecomastia occurs – in a man, literally, the mammary glands begin to grow. Secondly, the timbre of the voice rises. Thirdly, spermatogenesis worsens: the number of spermatozoa and their mobility decreases – male infertility occurs. Over time, with obesity, potency also decreases – not only hormonal imbalance plays a role here, but also malnutrition of the nervous tissue and deterioration of blood circulation.

In addition, estrogens change the psyche. Men become apathetic, tearful, depressive. They think that they are having a midlife crisis, but in fact it is purely hormonal changes associated with being overweight.

– Why do men get fat?

The main reasons are overeating and low physical activity. Modern lifestyle leads to a decrease in basal metabolism. A man is no longer physically a miner who hunts a mammoth. He works more with his head, intellect and moves very little. A decrease in daily calorie intake leads to the fact that even consuming them in a normal amount leads to overweight. And men are not accustomed to restrict themselves in food.

There is another factor that can contribute to the development of obesity in men – dishormonal disorders.

– Estrogens again?

Exactly. On the one hand, with age, the amount of androgens in the male body decreases, and then the conditions begin to dictate estrogens. On the other hand, in an excess of female sex hormones, oddly enough, dietary habits may be to blame.

In those countries where the food culture implies the consumption of a large amount of products that contain isoflavones – the so-called plant estrogens, a very large percentage of male obesity. Isoflavones in their structure similar to female sex hormones and can interact with estrogen receptors in the body. With excessive consumption of products with plant estrogens, the same processes are triggered that occur in the body with an excess of real estrogens. In men, secondary sexual characteristics change, there is weight gain.

What foods contain plant estrogens?

For example, products containing hops.

– Beer?

Exactly. Soy also contains a lot of isoflavones.

– So, there are a lot of them in sausages, sausages?

Yes. Therefore, the French are a slender nation, and the Germans are full.

However, plant estrogens are not all, recently scientists have found that ordinary drinking water can upset the balance of sex hormones in men.

– How?

The fact is that today the consumption of oral contraceptives – preparations containing estrogens – has greatly increased.

– But after all they accept women, instead of men!

Women take oral contraceptives, which are then excreted in the urine and enter the sewer. All sewage waste is cleaned through biofilters, but the hormonal decay products of tableted estrogens are not completely eliminated.

– That is, men receive estrogens with water?

Unutilized residues of synthetic estrogens. Of course, this problem is more important in Europe and America than in Russia, but I still would not recommend our men to drink tap water.

– Mariyat, who finds it easier to lose weight: men or women?

It is much easier for men to lose weight than for women, since male sex hormones have the ability to enhance catabolism – the breakdown of fats. Female hormones, on the contrary, have an anabolic effect – they activate lipid synthesis.

– Many men believe that in order to lose weight, it is enough to sign up for a gym and stop eating after six.

This is not true. With obesity, the gym is contraindicated. Incorrectly selected physical activity can adversely affect the heart and worsen the condition of the joints. The principle “do not eat after six” in itself is unlikely to help – in this case, it is necessary to activate the burning of fat concentrated inside the abdominal cavity.

– How to get rid of obesity?

To get started, seek help from experts. Obesity is a disease, and, therefore, to treat it doctors should. As with all other diseases, self-medication with obesity is unacceptable.