Metabolism plays a big role in our health, it’s not just about helping your digestive system work smoothly, but the way your body breaks down the food and helps nutrients get absorbed into the body that matters. But often due to one reason or the other, your metabolism can slow down, which then causes issues with people. Many people think that the reason they may be gaining weight could be because of their poor metabolism, so how does one go about fixing this issue and how do you even know that the fault lies with your metabolism.

To understand why your metabolism may be slowing down, we must understand what role it exactly plays. Metabolism is the process your body uses to turn food into energy. It's essential for everything from breathing and digestion to keeping you warm. Several things affect how fast your metabolism works, including your genes, health, and lifestyle. A slow metabolism means your body burns fewer calories, which can lead to tiredness, dry skin, weight gain, and cravings.

Why Does Your Metabolism Slow Down?

There can be many reasons why your metabolism may be slowing down. You inherit some of it, and it tends to slow down as you age, often due to changes in your body and less muscle. Men and women have different metabolisms because of body size, makeup, and hormones. What you eat matters too – not enough healthy food or a very low-calorie or high-fat diet can slow it down. A lazy lifestyle, lack of sleep, and stress can also make your metabolism sluggish. Certain health problems like diabetes or an underactive thyroid, and even environmental factors, may also play a role.

Signs You Need To Improve Your Metabolism

While these are some common signs, it is best to visit a healthcare professional and ask for their opinions before you try a solution. There are many underlying reasons as to why you are experiencing slow metabolism, it can also be a side-effect of some medicine. A healthy lifestyle goes a long way, especially for people who already have digestive issues, kidney or even mental health issues like stress and anxiety.

Constant Fatigue

Feeling tired all the time, even without a good reason, could mean your metabolism is slow. A slow metabolism means your body breaks down food into energy slowly, leaving you with low energy levels. You might feel sluggish or get tired easily throughout the day. Changes in what you eat or your body composition (how much fat and muscle you have) can also make you feel more tired.

Dry Skin

Dry skin is common in winter, but if you have it all the time, it could be a sign of a slow metabolism. Thyroid hormones help control your metabolism and also keep your skin hydrated. If your thyroid isn't working right and your metabolism is slow, your skin might get very dry.

Weight Gain

If you're eating healthy and exercising but still gaining weight, a slow metabolism could be the problem. A slow metabolism doesn't turn food into energy quickly, so you burn fewer calories. Extra calories are stored as fat, making it hard to lose weight.

Feeling Cold

Feeling cold even when it's not cold outside can be a sign of a slow metabolism. Your body generates heat through metabolism. If your metabolism is slow, your body temperature might be lower. Some studies show that people with an underactive thyroid or obesity may have lower body temperatures because of a slow metabolism. This can be because of problems with thyroid hormones, which help your body make heat.

Food Cravings

Craving sugary or fatty foods can be a sign of a slow metabolism. Studies show that cravings are related to metabolic health. This is especially true for people who don't eat enough healthy foods, have bad eating habits, or have low muscle mass and high fat mass. Cravings might also mean your body isn't getting enough energy from the food you eat, so it wants more energy.

Mood Swings

Everyone has mood swings sometimes. But if you have them often, it could be from a slow metabolism. Low energy and hormone problems that come with a slow metabolism can make you irritable and frustrated. Some older research also suggests a link between mental health issues and a slow metabolism.

Digestive Problems

Digestion and metabolism are connected. Digestion breaks down food, and metabolism turns it into energy. If your metabolism changes, like slowing down, it can affect your digestion. A slow metabolism can cause constipation, bloating, or diarrhea.

Low-dose aspirin could play a key role in lowering the risk of dementia significantly in some older adults, according to a new genetic analysis. However, the benefit does not come without a complication: major bleeding.

The study, led by researchers at Monash University in Australia, is based on data from more than 13,500 participants in the ASPREE trial, which investigated the effects of low-dose aspirin in older adults. The study was published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.

Researchers found that the benefit was mostly seen among people with a specific genetic trait linked with platelet count.

70% Lower Dementia Risk Was Seen Among Older Adults

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Platelets are small blood components that help form clots and stop bleeding. Researchers have previously examined how aggregation of platelets might contribute to dementia, but the role of genetically influenced platelet counts still remains unclear.

The researchers examined genetic scores related to platelet count and compared dementia results among participants who were either assigned aspirin or placebo.

Among people in the highest 20% of platelet count genetic scores, dementia developed in 1% of those taking aspirin, compared with 3.3% of those receiving a placebo. This represented approximately a 70% lower risk.

Lead author Dr Peter Fransquet, a research fellow at Monash University's School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, said, “Previous trials found aspirin didn't prevent dementia when everyone was considered together.”

“Our findings suggest there may be more to the story,” he said.

Risk Of Bleeding Increased

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The benefit was accompanied by a safety concern. Among participants in the same genetic subgroup, major bleeding occurred in 4.4% of those assigned to aspirin, compared to 2.1% of those given a placebo. That is a difference of 2.3 percentage points in both dementia cases and major bleeding events. In other words, the lower dementia rate cannot be considered in isolation from the increased bleeding risk.

Aspirin reduces the ability of platelets to form clots. This can be useful for certain people who need to take precaution against cardiovascular events, but it can also increase the risk of serious bleeding, including bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract or brain.

The study therefore does not prove that aspirin offers a favourable overall balance of benefits and harms for people with this genetic profile.

Could This Help Personalise Dementia Prevention?

The researchers found that the genetic signal was not linked to established genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's disease and dementia. Instead, it pointed towards platelet factor as a possible direction for further research.

“What's particularly interesting is that the signal wasn't linked to the established genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's disease and dementia,” Fransquet said. “Instead, it's pointing us towards platelet biology and gives us a new avenue to investigate.”

The findings could contribute to more personalised approaches to dementia prevention, in which treatments are tailored to characteristics that influence how individuals respond. But the results need to be replicated in other populations and tested in a clinical trial specifically designed for people with the identified genetic profile.

Fransquet said, “People shouldn’t start taking aspirin to prevent dementia on the basis of this study without consulting with their doctor, particularly given the increased risk of serious bleeding,” he said.

High blood pressure can be managed with medication and dietary changes. But recent research suggests that certain mental health habits can also help fight hypertension.

Mental health practices like mindfulness, optimism and gratitude may also support cardiovascular health, partly by helping people manage stress better and maintain healthier habits.

Hypertension affects nearly half of adults in the United States. While lifestyle changes like reducing salt intake, exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy weight and limiting alcohol remain crucial, the emerging study says that psychological wellbeing can also have a beneficial effect on blood pressure.

“Stress contributes to hypertension,” said Willie E. Lawrence Jr., a cardiologist and spokesperson for the American Heart Association. “It’s hard to get all the stress out of your life, but there are things that you can do to lower blood pressure, like mindfulness.”

According to the researchers, here are three mental health habits that may help:

Mindfulness

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Mindfulness refers to paying attention to thoughts, emotions and physical sensations in the present moment without judging them. It may help alleviate stress and improve behaviours that affect blood pressure like dietary choices and physical activity.

Eric Loucks, professor of epidemiology and director of the Mindfulness Center at Brown University, developed a mindfulness-based blood pressure reduction programme that teaches participants all about self-awareness, attention control and emotional regulation. The programme teaches people to apply these skills to everyday decisions like choosing healthier foods.

“There can be energy that comes up to act on those insights,” Loucks said. “So if we decide we want to eat more healthily, can we be there with that energy in the grocery store, selecting the food for the week?”

Optimism

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Optimism means expecting positive outcomes while recognising that challenges exist. Research has linked an optimistic outlook with better cardiovascular health, but evidence that it lowers blood pressure in people who already have hypertension is limited.

A study based on more than 100,000 active-duty US Army personnel without hypertension found that the most optimistic participants were less likely to develop high blood pressure during an average follow-up of three and a half years.

Julia Boehm, professor and chair of psychology at Chapman University said that practising optimism does not mean ignoring difficulties. Instead, people can identify realistic, achievable actions that support their health, such as choosing nutritious meals or becoming more physically active.

“This might mean something concrete like, ‘Am I going to choose to eat the salad or the french fries at lunch?’ and thinking optimistically that my choices in any given moment are going to translate into measurable effects in the long run,” Boehm said.

Gratitude

Gratitude involves acknowledging the people, experiences and acts one appreciates. Some research suggests it may affect cardiovascular responses to stress.

One study found that writing a gratitude letter changed how systolic blood pressure responded during a stress test. Systolic pressure, the upper number in a blood pressure reading, measures pressure when the heart contracts.

Mindfulness, optimism and gratitude should complement established hypertension treatment, not replace it. Medication, regular physical activity, a balanced diet and screening remain essential.

As Boehm cautioned, “You can’t ignore the doctor’s advice to either take your medications or engage in physical activity or eat fruits and vegetables. It’s just one piece of a larger strategy to bolster health.”

A small, non-invasive device that stimulates nerves through the ear has shown early promise for people whose blood pressure stays high despite medication, according to a new clinical trial led by researchers at Queen Mary University of London.

What the device does

The device uses a technique called transcutaneous autonomic neuromodulation, or tAN, which aims to influence the autonomic nervous system, the network of nerves that automatically controls functions like heart rate, digestion, and blood pressure, according to Queen Mary University of London. Developed by Afferent Medical Solutions, the handheld device uses two small clips placed on the tragus, the flap of cartilage just in front of the ear canal, to deliver mild electrical pulses. Patients can use it themselves at home without visiting a clinic.

How the trial worked

The trial, called SCRATCH-HTN and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research, enrolled 63 people with uncontrolled hypertension, all of whom were already taking at least one blood pressure medication but still had readings above recommended levels, per Queen Mary’s release. Participants were randomly split into two groups: one received active nerve stimulation, the other used a sham device as a comparison.

For the first two weeks, participants used their assigned device for 30 minutes daily. For the following ten weeks, that dropped to once a week.

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What the results showed

The treatment was safe and generally well tolerated, and most participants stuck to the prescribed schedule, suggesting it could work for regular home use, according to the findings published in Hypertension, a journal of the American Heart Association. Across the full study group, however, there was no statistically significant difference in blood pressure between the active stimulation group and the sham group.

There was one notable exception. Among participants who entered the trial with more severe hypertension, those receiving active stimulation showed a greater reduction in blood pressure compared to those on the sham device, per a prespecified subgroup analysis in the study.

What the lead researcher said

“This is an exciting, highly patient-acceptable technology that could ultimately provide a cheap, scalable solution for millions,” said Dr. Ajay Gupta, the trial’s chief investigator and a clinical reader at Queen Mary University of London, in the university’s press release. “Although the trial did not achieve significance across the broad unselected group, those with more severe hypertension exhibited a clear blood pressure reduction in the active group compared to sham.”

He added that the study “points towards important new research directions that could help us understand whether non-invasive neuromodulation can benefit particular groups of patients with uncontrolled hypertension.”

Why this matters

High blood pressure is a major driver of cardiovascular disease, raising the risk of heart attacks and strokes over time. While medication helps many patients, a significant number continue to have blood pressure above target even while on treatment, which is part of why researchers are exploring additional, non-drug approaches that could work alongside existing therapies.

What comes next

The researchers are clear that this is an early finding, not proof of an effective treatment. Because the subgroup result came from a relatively small trial, it will need to be confirmed in larger studies before any conclusions can be drawn about how well the device actually works, and for whom.