by Chef K.T. Murphy
Really Hungry Or Is It Psychological?
Are you like me, and hungry all the time?
I absolutely used to hate being hungry all the time. It felt like no matter what I did I 
never got enough to eat. There was nothing I could do to fill up my belly. This ended up with me getting a lot of weight.
I went and saw a nutritionist, and she asked me an important question: are you really hungry? I thought the answer was yes, but it turned out the answer was little more complicated. If you’re suffering from the constant hunger take a look at some of the reasons you could be feeling hungry when you’re really not hungry at all.
You’re Actually Thirsty
A lot of people don’t know this, but hunger is often a symptom of thirst. Dehydration can cause you to feel hungry. Next time you’re feeling super starving reach for a glass of water. Eat This, Not That recommends that you drink a and 8-ounce glass of water and wait 20 minutes.
Water Formula weight / 2 = oz per day
You especially need to do this if you’re not drinking the right amount of water every day. Did you know that you’re supposed to drink half your body weight in ounces of water every day? The half your body weight in ounces recommendation only applies if you’re sedentary. If you’re active, sweat a lot, or lives in an extreme environment; then you need to drink even more water.
You’re Not Sleeping
Waking up in the middle of the night and not getting enough sleep can have an effect on your hormones. There are two hormones that are linked to the appetite that are especially affected when your sleep cycle is off. These two hormones are called ghrelin and leptin. According to health.com ghrelin is a hormone that stimulates appetite and leptin is the hormone that cause feelings of fullness. When you’re not sleeping enough your levels of ghrelin skyrocket causing you to feel hungrier, then you actually are. On top of that, your levels of leptin plummet. This leaves you unable to tell when you get full. So not only are you hungry more often but you can’t tell when to stop eating because your hormones are all out of whack.
You’re Confusing Hunger with Appetite
Many Americans simply don’t know the difference between actual hunger and the desire to eat. Hunger, according to Women’s Health Magazine, is a “primal biological drive associated with physical symptoms such as a headache, shakiness and intestinal contractions that lead to a hungry gurgling sound from your stomach.”
When was the last time that you felt that way? Actually feeling hunger rather than just a desire for a particular food. Hunger has physical symptoms. Cravings for food, while strong, are quite different than hunger signs.
How can you tell if you’re hungry?
Here are a few tips from women’s health magazine for getting to the bottom of your hunger questions.
• Eat Mindfully
• Ask Yourself and My Hungry before You Start Eating
• Identify Food Triggers and Emotional Factors That Cause You to Eat
Mindful Eating
Mindful eating can be a difficult practice to learn. One of the best ways to practice mindful eating is to set simple rules for yourself about when and how you eat your food. Knowing that you are only allowed to eat while seated at a table designed for eating (e.g., a dining table or table at a restaurant, not your desk). Will allow you to check in with yourself to see if you are actually hungry.
You would be surprised how many times you will opt not to have a snack if you have to go and sit at your dining room table to eat it. It interrupts family time or television time and often makes you realize that you weren’t really hungry in the first place.
All of these great tips were given to me at my nutritionist’s office when I went in for constant hunger. You may find that they work for you.
If you are battling constant hunger, you should seek medical attention and the advice of your physician, because it could be a sign or symptom of a bigger medical issue. Otherwise, evaluate your hunger habits and see if any of the above apply to you.
All the best
Chef Murph
XoxoX
