Are You Hungry?
The difference between hunger and appetite

 

You’re probably wondering, what the heck is the difference between hunger and appetite, if there even is one?

There is…

Hunger (Internal Stimuli)

Your hunger is stimulated when your body feels depleted and in need of nutrient dense foods.  This is also known as the nutristatic hypothesis. You often times experience a feeling of hunger when your body actually requires nutrition for optimal metabolic functioning.  We are dependent upon many nutrient sources (ie fatty acids, amino acids, enzymes, vitamins, minerals, etc.) for all metabolic processes, optimal health status and everything else for that matter.  That uncomfortable feeling that you get - as if your own tummy is eating you from the inside out, is your body's way of saying, feed me now, or I will stop functioning.  Just like a gas light going off in your car warns you that you’re running low on gas and you better fill up, hunger is your body’s way of warning you that you are running low.

 

Most of the time, when people are truly hungry, they crave ‘real foods’ that are dense and rich in nutritional value (amino acids, vitamins, enzymes, minerals, fiber, etc.), rather than junk food. The exception to this thought is if you've waited so long to eat that your  blood sugar levels have dropped below what is normal for YOU (which may result in your feeling shaky, light headed, nauseas, irritated). It that case, you will eat anything, just to get your blood glucose back to normal and feel better.  

 
Some of the metabolic processes that regulate your hunger include the following:

There is a glycostatic hypothesis which triggers your body to eat just to maintain constant blood glucose (sugar) levels. You do need some sugar in your blood – but that doesn't mean you need a brownie!

There is also an adipostatic hypothesis which is caused when the body will eat to achieve or maintain a level certain amount of body fat. 

The aminostatic hypothesis, suggests the body will want to eat to maintain an optimal level of protein.

 
Appetite (External Stimuli)

Most people eat what and as much as they do today because their appetite is out of whack. 

Unlike true hunger, appetite is stimulated by a few external sensory cues such as the smell of food, thoughts of a specific food, exposure to food, etc. It does not come from within, like hunger does. Appetite is a response to an external trigger. Appetite can also be set off by psyche/emotional cues such as happiness, depression, anxiety, etc.   We usually work up an appetite for junk foods.  When you eat junk food, it actually stimulates your neural chemistry to give you an artificial high to which you become addicted to such as a smoker becomes addicted to nicotine, alcoholic to alcohol, etc.  Whatever caused this sensation, whether it was a slice of pie, a piece of chocolate bar or a bag of chips, your body will want you to fulfill its need to experience that high again, and again.

 
According to research out of Yale, processed foods have actually been engineered to become addictive so that we become dependent on them.  This is scary and dangerous. 

 
Conclusion

 
I want you to gain control over your appetite by responding to your body's hunger with the nutrients (not junk food!) it needs optimal daily functioning. By doing that, you will eventually avoid becoming hungry, which will suppress your appetite and it's associated splurges.

 
Happy Eating!

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