Ask a Doctor: Why are you always hungry? What causes your constant hunger?
Advice by Ellen A. Schur, MD, MS
Ellen A. Schur is a professor of medicine at the University of Washington and director of the University of Washington Nutrition and Obesity Research Center.
Several factors can influence how often you feel hungry, including the quality of the food you’re eating.
The type of food you’re eating is one of several variables that can affect how often you feel hungry.
Why is this happening? What can you do to feel more satisfied?
Many factors can cause someone to feel hungry. You could not be eating enough to provide your body with the energy it requires. However, it’s also crucial to consider lifestyle choices and dietary preferences. How often you feel hungry can be influenced by the kinds of foods you eat, if you’ve recently lost weight, how often you exercise, and whether you go extended periods without eating.
Here are a few causes of hunger that occur even after having a meal.
The types of food you eat
What kind of food is ultra-processed? What food should I substitute?
Try to stay away from highly processed food options and, where circumstances permit, add natural foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and seeds to your diet. Rather than focusing primarily on carbohydrates, try to include more proteins and fats in your meals.
Research has demonstrated that not all food sources cause hunger in the same way. If you want foods that are heavy in sugar, carbohydrates, or fats. That might be the motivation for people saying they want an apple. craving pizza, cookies, or chips instead. Although it seems counterintuitive, consuming a certain dish can be making you feel hungrier.
Exercise and work habits
Your priorities in life may affect how much energy you require, which may also contribute to your hunger. Think about your dietary routine. What time do you usually get hungry? after a vigorous workout? the night? People may feel less hungry just after exercising, but hours or even days later, they may feel significantly hungrier.
You might restrict your food intake during the day due to a busy schedule or efforts to maintain your weight, yet you might experience cravings or a lack of fullness at night.
Recent weight loss
Whether you just lost weight affects your hunger, which is a typical but frequently ignored aspect.
Body weight is a biological system that is closely regulated. Following weight loss, chemicals in the blood alert the brain to the depletion of fat-based energy reserves. Because energy availability is essential to survival, the brain takes action to conserve energy while increasing our desire to eat.
This occurs independently of the starting weight you were at or if you have health issues because of your weight.
The level of body fat is vigorously defended by the brain, experts believe, and this might cause weight gain following weight loss. Due to the body of information, many scientists believe that obesity should be treated as a chronic disease.
Skipping Meals
Generally speaking, your brain will encourage you to eat if you aren’t providing your body with the whole daily energy needs it requires to maintain your weight. Going without food for extended periods of time or skipping meals causes hormonal and cognitive changes that increase appetite. This might manifest as a growling stomach as well as cravings or desires.
Medications
It is important to have your doctor review your medication list. Weight gain is a side effect of some diabetes treatments (glyburide, glipizide), neuropathy drugs (gabapentin), and antidepressants (mirtazapine).
A Medical Condition
It’s crucial to see a doctor if your appetite has noticeably changed, particularly if you’ve been gaining or losing weight. Appetite loss can be a symptom of major conditions including diabetes, cancer, or depression. The signs of hypothyroidism, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and sleep difficulties include increased hunger and weight gain.
Genetics and Hormone Changes
If you experienced childhood hunger problems when you were 5 years old or younger, a rare hereditary disorder may be to blame. The entire set of genes you inherited is another significant and frequent factor: According to studies, identical twins who also share a comparable baseline hunger level experience similar brain responses to food. Appetite is frequently impacted by hormonal changes related to puberty, pregnancy, and premenstrual syndrome.
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Disordered Eating
You should be tested for an eating disorder if you feel out of control or numb, consume enormous amounts of food that make you feel uncomfortable or purge after meals.
Stress, Emotions, and Sleep
Your desire to eat may be stimulated by stress levels, boredom, food signals, emotions, and a lack of sleep. In those circumstances, investigating mindful or intuitive eating techniques or addressing the root reason, such as making sure you get enough sleep, may be wise.
Be patient with yourself because it could take some time to resolve these problems. Food, weight, and body image-related emotions can be very strong. Due to the stigma associated with being overweight, many people have encountered prejudice or discrimination, including from medical experts. So, if you’re receiving blame or humiliation, seek medical attention elsewhere. When talking about difficulties related to weight and appetite, everyone needs to feel secure and supported.
Keep in mind that there is a cause for the strong impulses to eat. Although modern diets and the way we eat have evolved, our brains are still designed for survival. Our behavior is influenced by this innate drive even when we are not aware of it.
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