Down Syndrome & Weight loss

SmartAngieT · March 2017

I do want to have a healthy lifestyle and less of a big stomach it's doing more harm than good and everyone is worried anything I eat doesn't get metabolized properly and it automatically stores it as fat because of the down syndrome and hyperthyroidism which I take medication for to slow down the production of Cortisol how much will this effect any effort at all to lose weight

cbelc2 · March 2017

Try drinking only water and skim milk, not juices or sodas/sweet drinks. Eat more things made from whole grain (oatmeal, brown rice) and less things made with refined grain (white bread, regular noodles, white rice). Slow down on cheese and chop any fat off your meat before you eat it.

srk369 · March 2017

I have a daughter with Down Syndrome and thyroid issues and I think it is harder but not impossible. I see my 2 other daughters eat the same if not more food and they are both so much thinner, but they also move a lot more. We struggle keeping her active and that seems to be the key. I will say that between the last 2 dr visits we kept her weight steady which was a real win. Try walks or other low impact exercise. Swimming is great and we have several friends in our local DS group that love to swim at the Y. Good luck!

CTcutie · March 2017

Your metabolism may very well be slower, but I did a little research online, and it seems like you can still lose weight in a healthy way. Did your doctor tell you not to try and lose weight?

You said you want to have a healthy lifestyle- what does that mean to you?
What can you do (baby steps, not huge changes at once) to help you get to where you want to be?

Maybe that means you focus on things (at first) like drinking more water instead of soda or juice, or trying new fruits or vegetables. Who prepares your food most of the time- Do you, or does someone else? If you cook, maybe you can try one new healthy recipe each week, or take a cooking class. Or maybe you can go for a walk before dinner? Sometimes that helps take your mind off food for a little while, and you can enjoy some fresh air.

You don't need to change everything all at once, in fact if you do, it probably wont work out so well (I know because I tried, haha!).

SmartAngieT · March 2017

Thank you all for your input I really appreciate it I've been living on my own in my first apartment for 4 years it comes with the ability to cook for yourself and I come up with a new recipe every day and have been sharing them on Instagram once a week and sometime put one up on here under the My Recipes tab I am always open for suggestions on anything so your advice will be put to good use Thank you

jenilla1 · March 2017

It sounds like you have the right attitude for developing a healthy lifestyle.

Now you just need to figure out a plan for making it happen. Maybe you can ask your doctor for a referral to a registered dietician. It would be cool if you could find one who has experience developing nutrition plans for clients with Down Syndrome, since there can be different nutritional and health needs. Do you have any kind of exercise or a fitness plan? That would be helpful, too.

Keep up what you're doing with your recipes on Instagram. Sharing your experiences with others can be very motivating.

kommodevaran · March 2017

I think it's great that you want to take care of your health, and that you've found MFP! We are the mythbusters

You lose weight just like everybody else - by sticking to a calorie deficit. This means that you're eating a little bit less every day. If you can move a bit more as well, that can add to the deficit.

Log what you eat in your food diary. Aim to hit the calorie goal MFP gave you. Experiment and find out which foods/meals makes you satisfied - and what makes you hungry and grumpy and wanting to eat more. Stick to the food that makes you feel good. Try new recipes and keep those you like.

StealthHealth · March 2017

I guess that because of your different metabolic rate you are going to need to do a little more work to establish weight loss calories.

So, monitoring your weight (and probably some measurements) is going to be much more important (I'd recommend that you start that now) - then, tweaking the calories in or calories out to achieve your goals. #yougotthis

Down Syndrome & Weight loss

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