Even though it is common to experience an increase in appetite while training harder, going through abnormal stress, or depriving yourself from proper sleeping, we should always be attentive for signs of permanent increased appetite.
In case you feel you can devour the whole world with some almonds sprinkled on the top, here are Five Reasons Why You Are Always Hungry and How to Counter-effect it:
1) You are Dehydrated: Mild dehydration is often masked as feeling of hunger. The hypothalamus, part of the brain which regulates both hunger and thirst may get you confused about what your body is lacking and you may end up with a big bag of potato chips in your hands. For avoiding it drink a minimum of one liter of water for every 20 kg of body weight minimum.
2) You Are Not Sleeping Enough: Depriving yourself of sleeping cause a serious imbalance in your hormones concentration. Among different hormones which will get deregulated, Ghrelin, an appetite stimulator goes up and Leptin, a hormone that causes the feeling of fullness goes down. The restless body also craves for desperate shots of energy, which then make you crave carbohydrates and high energy dense foods. Aim to sleep at least 8-10 hours a night.
3) You Are Eating Too Many Simple or Processed Carbohydrates: Simple carbs, the ones found in refined and/or sugary food like cookies, pastry, rice, white potatoes, pasta, ice cream, juices, bread spike your blood sugar levels quickly, then leave it to drop soon after. This lack of sugar experienced post simple carb eating cause the body to crave for more sugary carbs. This Blood Sugar Roller-coaster starts deregulating your sensitivity to insulin and might not make you simply fatter, lethargic but also end up causing Diabetes Type 2. Opt for complex non processed carbohydrates. My favorite: sweet potatoes, broccoli, spinach, beans, oats once in a while.
4) You are Surrounded by Food Temptations: A study from the American journal Obesity in 2012, pointed that just looking at food might be enough to boost the levels of Ghrelin, the appetite stimulator hormone. Try eliminating your possibilities of seeing or smelling food. Just finished eating? Get out of the table.
5) You Are Eating Way Too Fast: Eating too fast might give you a full stomach feeling, but you haven't allowed your brain enough time to register that fullness. Eat your food slowly. My favorite strategies are chewing for at least 20 times, not watching or reading anything while eating, taking a minimum of 20 minutes to finish eating and starting with a huge portion of low caloric greens.
Even though the causes are not limited to these ones, they are all suitable as a guideline for better health and a not so furious hunger.
Keep Strong. And Be Grateful for Your Food.