HGH and Weight Loss
Because of its ability to burn fat, human growth hormone is rated as one of the best weight loss agents out there. The primary function of HGH as a weight loss substance is by virtue of its property to cause decreased glucose uptake in tissues such as skeletal muscle and fat tissues.

Human growth hormone levels decline with age. HGH secretion from the pituitary glands hit peak levels during childhood and adolescence and declines as a person approaches adulthood and middle age. Consequently fat deposits increase in the body as HGH is not available in adequate amounts to regulate fat metabolism.

However it is possible to increase the levels of the hormone synthetically via HGH therapy. Many doctors recommend HGH injections, pills or sprays as a mode of weight loss.

HGH works to achieve weight loss by increasing the amount of Insulin-like Growth Factor-1 or IGF-1 that is excreted by the liver. Hence it causes the release of fatty acids stored in tissues. HGH enhances the utilization of fat rather than glucose for energy throughout the body.

Growth hormone has the unique ability to promote fat utilization and this effect coupled with its protein anabolic effect, causes an increase in lean body mass, this achieving weight loss.

In a major study in 1990 published in The New England Journal of Medicine, it was found that 12 men who were put on HGH therapy had decreased in fat deposits and an increase in lean mass and bone density, while 9 men who did not take HGH had no such effects.

A study by Kim KR and colleagues from the Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea published in the journal Hormone Research advocated low-dose growth hormone treatment with diet restriction and said such therapy accelerates body fat loss, exerts anabolic effect and improves growth hormone secretory dysfunction in obese adults.

Another study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism in March 2005 suggested that in postmenopausal women with abdominal obesity, 1 yr of GH treatment improved insulin sensitivity and reduced abdominal visceral fat and total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations. The study by Celina Franco and colleagues at University Hospital in Goteborg, Sweden involved forty postmenopausal women with abdominal obesity.

On the flip side HGH induces a type of insulin resistance by virtue of preventing the uptake of glucose in muscle and fat tissues. This causes the levels of blood glucose to rise and may lead to a compensatory increase in insulin secretion by the pancreas.

For this reason, human growth hormone's effects on fat tissues are akin to a diabetogenic state wherein the metabolic disturbances produced in the body are very similar to these seen in patients with type 2 diabetes. The exact mechanism as to how HGH promotes insulin resistance is unknown, but it is theorized that high insulin levels may decrease the sensitivity of the liver and skeletal muscle to the hormone.

So while HGH may be very useful in ensuing a slim and trim physique by promoting weight loss, it may also produce unwanted effects in the form of insulin resistance, which is a risk factor for developing diabetes. Consumers must always consult their doctor before starting on HGH weight loss therapy.