What’s New With My Weight Loss Trend?

“To keep the body in good health is a duty otherwise we shall not be able to keep the mind strong and clear.” — Buddha

I had written a story about losing weight unintentionally here:

Friends, family, and I were concerned. Fellow Medium writers like Josephine Crispin Alexandru Gavrilovici Graceygee Jan Mozer Mary Mahoney had shown concern too. Thank you. This is roughly 6 weeks after. I have gained a couple of pounds. Yay! Now, it’s hard to say one thing’s been responsible, as there have been many variables at play. Mayo Clinic has a long list of causes of unexplained weight loss here:

I have reviewed this list before. I remember reading the opening paragraph more than once, which stated:

Unexplained weight loss has many causes, medical and nonmedical. Often, a combination of things results in a general decline in your health and a related weight loss. Sometimes a specific cause isn’t found.

First, I have spent the last 6 weeks in a tropical climate. The list doesn’t have climate change as a cause of weight loss. It however mentions diet and appetite change as causes of weight loss. This is common knowledge.

I remember my sister and my mom’s alarm at how much weight I had lost; they swore I was on a carb-free diet. I told them they were mistaken. They asked me to prove it by eating as non-selectively as possible. This was a no-brainer. While in North America, I ate potatoes, rice, plantain, oats, and bread. I complimented these with proteins, fruits, green vegetables, carrots, and stews. Now being home with family, I eat all these listed above and more. I also embraced traditional recipes, both old and new. I still have some aversion to overly processed food.

Four weeks after my return, people remarked I was gaining weight. Now it looked like my mom and sis were right. My colleague who had seen me as I returned and saw me after a few weeks also alluded to the same fact. She said to me: “You do not need to go on that investigation spree you had originally intended. You were starving, that’s all.”

Is that really all? Wasn’t I happier and less anxious? Wasn’t I surrounded by people I enjoyed being around? These same people had the power to drive you nuts when given the chance. The Mayo Clinic mentions depression as a cause of weight loss. Yes, I had my fair share of challenges in North America. Some of them affected my mental health negatively. We can imply, like many scientists before me, that there is a psychological component to weight loss and weight gain.

My challenges have not disappeared, though I dwell on them less than I did before. Perhaps I am in an environment that gives me other things to focus on. My 18-month-old nephew sure amuses me with the frequency with which he steals my toothbrush. I feel less isolated here for sure. A combination of all variables mentioned plus a change in diet might be responsible for the weight gain. Time will tell or as we say in the scientific community, more studies are needed.