9 Proven Tips to Help You Stop Feeling Hungry All the Time and to Curb Appetite Naturally
Being hungry all the time and the constant appetite are some of the top reasons why most people gain extra pounds or why quit their diet.
People experience something like:
“I am so hungry that I can eat all day long. And not just junk food, I could eat anything.”
“I eat properly, but even after I finish my meal, I am starving again.”
And if you have been thinking in this way meanwhile, it is discouraging and frustrating, and probably you are ready to give up.
Do not quit just yet; we can fix this, but first, let talk about hunger.
Two of the primary hormones that control our appetite are ghrelin and leptin. The hormone ghrelin signals the feeling of hunger, and leptin signals the feeling of satiety. But each of these signals can go out of balance. How to control ghrelin and leptin levels and restore the balance of appetite hormones, see below.
What is ghrelin and how it works
Ghrelin is the hormone that signals the feeling of hunger. It is secreted by cells in the stomach and pancreas.
It travels through the bloodstream to the hypothalamus in the brain, where it gives the impression that our energy reserves are running down, and we need to eat.
Ghrelin levels rise between meals, especially during nighttime sleep, and fall immediately after a meal.
Leptin - the hormone that tells us to stop eating
The hormone leptin is produced by adipose tissue, and fat cells secrete it at an almost constant rate. This means that the more fat a person has in their body, the more leptin they will produce.
At normal body fat levels, this is a self-monitoring system: if the number of fat cells increases so does the production of leptin, which suppresses appetite, thus maintaining a constant level of fat reserves.
Why do we feel hungry after eating - impaired leptin function
The main culprit for the disruption of the primary function of leptin, namely to signal satiety, is the overproduction of the hormone. It is seen in people with high-fat levels.
These people have a large number of fat cells, all of which produce leptin.
The chronic excess of the hormone overloads the receptors in the brain, and this reduces their sensitivity, as a result of which they stop responding to the signal that we are full.
This leads to negative feedback, in which the declining sensitivity to leptin leads to an increase in appetite, which in turn causes more and more eating, accumulation of more fat, and increased production of leptin in a vicious circle.
This is what it’s like when you are with leptin resistance
Leptin gives a signal when it’s time to stop eating, but your body doesn’t notice it. Do you know what happens at a children’s birthday party, where there is chaos all around, but you’re so resistible to kids sounds, you don’t seem to hear any of it?
That is what it’s like to be leptin resistant – the signals are there—your body doesn’t listen to them. How does leptin resistance act over hunger? Your body keeps thinking: “If I don’t eat right now, I’m going to starve, so I should eat more.”
Restoring balance through insulin control
Impaired ghrelin and leptin impair our ability to eat in accordance with the real needs of the body.
The key player in balancing energy and appetite is the hormone insulin, which controls energy storage.
High levels of insulin are a signal for the body to put brakes on energy use and start storing it. In this way, insulin makes it challenging to release fat energy and makes it easier for the body to accumulate it.
Insulin plays an indirect role in causing hunger
When we eat something easily digestible, the blood sugar level rises sharply, and insulin rushes to direct the recently consumed sugars to the cells.
This drastically lowers blood sugar levels, as it should, but as a result of its significant drop soon after eating, we feel hungry again.
It is a sharp increase in blood sugar levels, followed by a sharp drop. That simple is a result of high-glycemic-index, highly processed, pleasant-tasting, easily digestible carbohydrates, the main culprit for fat accumulation and obesity.
And the more fat cells we form in our body, the more resistant it becomes to the saturation hormone leptin, and we continue to eat more and more.
9 Proven Tips to Help You Stop Feeling Hungry All the Time, and Restoring the balance between ghrelin, leptin, and insulin
The most appropriate way to balance the hormones that control appetite is to follow a balanced diet. Try the following tips to restore balance in your body:
1. Cut out the processed food and consume real, whole foods
Eat foods rich in nutrients, not calories. Consuming a healthy range of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats allows your body to maintain the necessary energy reserves, and you will not suffer from bouts of wolf hunger.
Sources of protein (meat and egg fillets), healthy fats (raw nuts, olive oil), low glycemic index carbohydrates (brown rice, oatmeal), vegetables and 1-2 fruits will help effectively regulate blood sugar levels in during your day and are one of the most powerful natural weapons to deal with the hunger.
2. Eat high-fiber foods to feel full for longer
Many studies highlight the benefits of fiber in food(seeds, legumes, roots, and tubers). They not only help maintain good health but would help you in successfully control of hunger.
Fiber food satisfies hunger for a long time, and we eat less throughout the day. Beans, Avocados, Chia Seeds, Green Peas, Greens, Broccoli, Whole Wheat Pasta, Oranges, Sweet Potatoes, are all rich in fiber foods that will help you to control your hunger and eat less.
3. Don't skip breakfast
Missing breakfast, as well as choosing the wrong one, is a prerequisite for many to confuse their whole day.
Starting the day with a healthy breakfast containing essential nutrients is the perfect way to lay an excellent nutritional base for the day ahead, and stop cravings for food.
You may feel that coffee or fresh is enough to start your day full, but they cannot supply the body with fuel for a more extended time.
In this way, it is very likely that very soon after the breakfast in question you will reach for what is most affordable and convenient to eat, namely fast and unhealthy food.
On the other hand, if you nourish your body adequately, you will be much less likely to feel a big appetite or hunger for the next few hours.
What would a healthy breakfast look like that would give you energy for hours to come?
Option 1:
Whole eggs (source of high-quality protein and beneficial fats), in combination with oatmeal (source mainly of complex carbohydrates), combined and cooked according to personal preferences.
Option 2:
Whey protein powder (a source of mainly high-quality protein), in combination with raw nuts (a source of mostly beneficial fats) and an amount of oatmeal, combined according to personal preferences according to taste and purpose.
4. Compose your meals clever
The composition of your meals can help significantly reduce appetite.
When done correctly, that will allow your body to control your blood sugar levels much more efficiently.
Excluding a big group of foods that supply a variety of nutrients is one way to ensure an uncontrollable appetite and constant hunger, especially if you have no experience with diets behind you.
Eat more protein
Not only does protein assist you to feel fuller, but it further boosts your metabolism and aids you lose body fat.
If your food is lacking in protein, you’re missing an essential ingredient in the struggle against hunger. So, make it an absolute point to eat protein at your very next meal.
Vegetables
Lack of vegetables in your daily diet is one of the most severe mistakes. They can satiate you for a long time in combination with other foods, but without providing extra calories. The only downside will come from this if you season them with immeasurable amounts of salt and fat.
Healthy fat
Eat healthy fat such as wild-caught fat fish(salmon, sardines, etc.), raw nuts(almonds, walnuts, macadamia nuts), EV Olive oil, Ghee, and so on. For example, avocado helps detoxify the liver and is rich in unsaturated fats. It also contains a lot of fiber, which contributes to the control of hunger.
Do not consume food at least two hours before going to bed. Eating food early on the day prevents you from overeating at midnight
5. Replace favorite foods with healthier versions
Replacing foods that are hard to resist is the right approach that can save a lot of extra calories. Sample replacements you can make:
• Replace cold yogurt with fresh fruit instead of ice cream;
• Slices of carrots and cucumber with hummus instead of chips;
• Dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate;
• Homemade popcorn instead of bought with a lot of fat;
• Wholemeal bread or a slice with natural peanut butter instead of donuts;
• Minced meat (e.g., beef shawl and pork counter fillet) for minced beef instead of minced beef with added bacon, salt, preservatives, etc .;
• A healthier version of a pizza made at home with wholemeal or cauliflower dough (recipe for a healthy pizza here) instead of bought;
• Wholemeal spaghetti or pasta with a home-made sauce made from vegetables instead of ready-made or a restaurant;
• Coffee sweetened with a natural sweetener stevia instead of coffee with sugar or honey and cream.
6. Eat mindfully
Your stomach needs 20 minutes to send signals to the brain that you are full.
Eating while you are stressed out also leads to more fat. One reason is that the food is not digested well, but meanwhile, you are eating more and more. But as well as because stress hormones slow your metabolism and promote fat storage, especially belly fat.
So, when it is time to eat, slow down, and enjoy every part of your meal or snack.
Be aware of trigger foods
Stay away from trigger foods from which you eat more and things like sugary drinks, refined carbs of any kind, and artificial sweeteners that make you crave more and eat more. So please stay away from them.
7. Good Hydration
Maintaining proper hydration is essential for controlling appetite.
If you are dehydrated, it is very likely to create an imbalance in sodium levels in the body. Further, in turn, can lead to a desire to eat foods rich in salt, which are often unhealthy and high in calories.
How do you know how much water you need?
The average person that is 70 kilograms, the water that he should drink, would be between 2.5 – 4 liters of water per day. When resolving which limit to choose, consider things like climate, physical activity, and your level of sweating.
Also, when you feel hungry, but it is not the time for your planned meal: Drink one glass of water and wait 10 minutes. Very often, the hunger will pass or decrease significantly. The reason for this is that our bodies can mistake the signals of hunger and thirst.
8. Control your stress levels and aid your sleep quality
Stress makes as to overeat, and makes as to the overeating of the wrong kind of foods. Constant stress is associated with increased appetite, being overweight, and a greater need for unhealthy foods.
Learn to relax actively
I am not talking about sitting on the couch and watching TV. To reduce stress levels and help further minimize appetite, you can try fitness, yoga, or other sports.
Your body needs at least 7 to 9 hours of sound sleep to put in order all its systems and balance its hormones.
There is a link between poor quality sleep and low levels of the hormone leptin, while at the same time the levels of the hormone responsible for stimulating hunger – ghrelin, has risen.
Additionally, poor sleep is equal to more cortisol and less growth hormone, which means fewer muscles and extra fat accumulation in your body.
9. Moderate or eliminate alcohol
Alcohol creates weight gain by its surplus calories, but moreover, it promotes appetite and increases impulsivity and predisposing a person to more food consumption.
Except for red wine, most alcoholic drinks lead to extra weight, while red wine appears to have a moderately protective role against weight gain.
Alcohol encourages food cravings, which is the reason why the restaurants are offering you drink before ordering a meal.