Tuesday, March 19, 2013

When Does Metabolism Slow Down for Women? 10 Facts to Know

When does metabolism slow down for women? Why does metabolism slow down for women? What is metabolism anyway? Why does it prove to be an important function in the body? Here are 10 things you need to know about metabolism, women, aging and menopausal.
 
When Does Metabolism Slow Down for Women? 1-3 Facts to Know

1. For starters, metabolism is the life sustaining activity wherein food is converted into energy. Why is metabolism a critical area for dieters? It is because food that are not converted into energy are stored in the body as adipose tissue or fat.

2. What about women? The major difference – when it comes to metabolism and body structure – is than men’s bodies are primarily made up of muscles. For women, meanwhile, are primarily made up of fats.

3. Why do women have more adipose tissue than men? A woman’s body is uniquely made up. Women actually need adipose tissue to aid in their reproductive system’s processes such as the menstrual period.
 
When Does Metabolism Slow Down for Women? 4-7 Facts to Know

4. Men have higher metabolism compared to women. The utmost reason is the physiological build-up of the body. Men have more muscles wherein lean tissues are more metabolically active. Muscle innately helps burn energy giving men the privilege of having faster metabolism.

5. Does age cause a difference when it comes to metabolism? According to a study conducted by Maastricht University in Netherlands, shows that the elderly have lesser BMR or basal metabolic rate compared to young people.

6. Why does metabolism slow down with age? One of the reasons may be that the amount of muscles in the body begins to recede. The body’s systems begin to slow down – and an array of conditions may follow. An elderly may resort to sitting down and watching television than go to a gym or run a marathon.

7. To add, other conditions may occur, such as arthritis, hypertension related to lifestyle condition, which may cause a person to slow down with exercising. To add, women during their menopausal stage may have an imbalance in their hormonal system.
 
When Does Metabolism Slow Down for Women? 8-10 Facts to Know

8. Metabolism is primarily controlled by the thyroid gland located at the back of the neck. The thyroid gland is controlled by the hypothalamus, which also governs other processes, including hormones in the body. When a woman is in her menopausal stage, hormones might tend to be unstable and a transition between hypermetabolism to hypometabolism may occur.

9. Menopause varies in women. Early menarche or menstruation in women might also cause them to have early menopause or cessation of the menses. Women who have late menarche in the youth might also have later menopause in their adulthood.

10. Other causes where a woman’s metabolism would slow down are medical causes such as hypothyroidism, or problems in the thyroid gland. Other causes would be related to hormonal imbalance such as in conditions like Cushing’s syndrome. Now, when does metabolism slow down for women? The real answer varies among women but on average it is 45 to 55 of age, where menopausal sets in.