A constant feeling of hunger can indicate both the presence of a disease and the wrong lifestyle leading to this phenomenon. Determine the exact cause of constant hunger can only be a specialist. By nature, in the human brain there are many functions that help to remove metabolic products, monitor sleep, and do not allow you to starve.
Center in the brain
In the cerebral cortex is the center responsible for nutrition. It is associated with the digestive organs, carried out using nerve endings, and allows you to control the feeling of hunger. The nutrition center is divided into two sections, one of which is responsible for satiation and is located in the hypothalamus, and the other is responsible for hunger and is located in the lateral sector. Thanks to these areas, the brain receives a signal about a lack of energy and nutrients, as well as about the onset of saturation. What can be associated with a constant feeling of hunger?
Signal Methods
The brain center responsible for nutrition receives information on the sufficient intake of food into the body in two ways:
1. Through signals transmitted by nerve endings emanating from the organs of the gastrointestinal tract.
2. By processing information on the amount of nutrients ingested with food, namely amino acids, glucose, fats, etc.
Reasons for constant hunger
The reasons for the constant feeling of hunger even after eating can be of a very different nature. The main ones are:
1. Hyperrexia. This is a condition where the patient constantly experiences a feeling of hunger, although the body does not need to replenish nutrients.
2. Hyperthyroidism, manifested by increased synthesis of enzymes produced by the thyroid gland.
3. Diabetes mellitus. Patients experience a constant feeling of hunger with this pathology very often.
4. Pathologies of the stomach, such as peptic ulcer or gastritis with high acidity.
5. Dependence on food of a psychological nature.
6. Intense mental stress, for example, during a student session.
7. Failure in the hormonal balance of the body.
8. Intense physical activity, which provoke large-scale waste of energy.
9. Restriction of consumed products, mono-diets.
10. Prolonged depression.
11. Thirst.
12. Violation of the menstrual cycle.
13. Unbalanced nutrition is a common cause of a constant feeling of hunger in women.
Hunger comes at a time when the body signals the brain a lack of energy. This is a normal body reaction that prevents depletion and protects all organs and systems. A constant feeling of hunger can appear due to two main factors: physiological or psychological disorder.
The nutrition process is normal.
In normal condition, the nutrition process occurs as follows:
1. An impulse is transmitted to the brain, requiring replenishment of energy.
2. Nutrition is provided to the body.
3. The next impulse reports saturation.
4. Hunger is receding.
If a constant feeling of hunger haunts a person, then this indicates the breaking of one of the above ties. A constant desire to eat, if you do not take measures, will inevitably lead a person to overweight and the pathologies that follow.
Symptoms
A person begins to experience a feeling of hunger at the moment when the stomach sends the first impulse to the brain. The true feeling of hunger comes about 12 hours after eating. This period depends on the individual characteristics of the person and is not common to all.
Hunger is characterized by stomach cramps that last up to half a minute. Cramping occurs intermittently, and there is a tendency to increase. After a certain period of time, the cramps become permanent and sharp. Then it starts to “suck under the stomach”, while the stomach rumbles.
How to get rid of a constant feeling of hunger is of interest to many.
Emotional upheaval
Emotional upheavals have the property of suppressing hunger for a certain period of time. It has been found that patients with high blood sugar suffer more than everyone else.
There is also a constant feeling of hunger with gastritis.
Doctors quite often hear complaints about this from their patients. However, it is quite difficult to establish the cause of this phenomenon. This is due to a large number of factors that can cause this symptom. Sometimes women in the first stage of pregnancy have a constant desire to eat. This is a physiological phenomenon that does not require special attention and does not cause concern.
Hunger after eating
There are patients who feel a constant feeling of hunger even immediately after eating. The reasons for this phenomenon are:
1. A drop in glucose caused by psychological or physiological factors. A prolonged imbalance between glucose and insulin can cause diabetes mellitus, which subsequently leads to a constant feeling of hunger. An attempt to stop this feeling will lead to inevitable overeating and obesity.
2. A sharp change in the mode and quality of nutrition. This may be a corrective diet, fasting for health purposes or moving to new climatic conditions. Over a period of time, the body is rebuilt in a new way.
3. A significant limitation in the frequency of meals and their volumes. You should eat fractionally so as not to cause the body to starve. Reducing the number of meals will inevitably lead to the fact that the body will require food.
4. The state of stress. When the body experiences negative emotional upheavals, it is actively trying to make up the level of the hormone of joy and the easiest way to do this is by eating something tasty. This is called stress seizing and is quite common. Such a desire forms a connection in the brain between a stressful situation and food. In especially severe cases, it will be possible to overcome the feeling of hunger caused by stress only by a qualified psychologist.
5. Intensive mental activity. It is also a factor that can cause hunger immediately after eating. Quite often, people engaged in mental work neglect the diet and replace a full meal with snacks. Such a regimen cannot be called healthy, and it leads to the fact that after a very short period of time after eating a person wants to eat again. The solution to the problem is to change the diet. This refers to the transition to three meals a day with healthy snacks between main meals.
6. Frequent diets are also able to provoke a constant feeling of emptiness in the stomach. When the body is in the framework of malnutrition, it tries by any means to fill the shortage. He does this even from the minimum of food received, and often creates a supply. Therefore, people who are on strict diets sometimes get an increase in weight instead of the expected decline. You should carefully listen to the desires of your own body. This will help to avoid undesirable consequences and complications. A balanced diet should be preferred over strict diets.
7. Deficiency of trace elements and vitamins in the body can also cause a feeling of constant hunger. If you want to eat salty, you should add foods rich in magnesium to the diet. Harmful sweets such as sweets and biscuits can be replaced with dried fruits and dark chocolate (in moderation). Cabbage, fruits and poultry meat will help replenish the reserves of phosphorus, chromium and sulfur.
8. Another factor that can cause a feeling of constant hunger is premenstrual syndrome. This is due to the fact that at this period in the body of a woman there is a deficiency of estrogen. Therefore, a woman irresistibly wants to eat something all the time. The only advice that can be given in such a situation is to give preference to healthy food, even if you increase its amount. Drinking more clean water is also recommended.
It is important not only to find out the causes of a constant feeling of hunger, but also to start therapy in a timely manner.
Treatment
The main question is what to do if hunger does not go away even after eating. First of all, you should contact your local GP. The doctor after questioning and examination will send the patient to a narrower specialist. In unreleased cases, the general recommendations of nutritionists can be:
1. Eat as much fiber-containing foods as possible.
2. When thirsty, drink mineral or regular water.
3. The food plate should be small, light in color. Scientists have found that bright colors stimulate appetite.
4. Chew food slowly and carefully. This will allow the stomach to signal saturation on time and avoid overeating.
5. Do not read or watch TV while eating.
6. Diet should not be rigid. It should be a decision based on the principles of good nutrition to lead a healthy lifestyle.
7. After lunch, do cleaning and washing dishes. Sitting at the table after a meal provokes a desire to try something else.
8. Standing and on the go is impossible. Only sitting at the table.
9. You should reduce the amount of consumed foods that boost your appetite.
10. No later than two hours before going to bed, one should eat food the last time a day.
11. During work, any food should be removed from the table, as its presence leads to unconscious, plentiful snacks.
12. If you are hungry, distract your brain, play sports, read books, play board games, and do household chores.
Solve psychological problems
When the reason for the feeling of constant hunger is in the field of psychological problems, you should get advice from a neurologist and psychologist. They will help to cope with the problem.
What else to do with a constant feeling of hunger?
Sometimes a consultation with a gastroenterologist and endocrinologist may be required. This will eliminate the violation in the hormonal background as a cause of constant hunger. Treatment in this case is carried out on a medication basis.
Conclusion
So, the causes of the feeling of constant hunger are quite diverse and versatile. Therefore, to determine the factor that provokes this symptom, you must consult a specialist. The problem of a constant feeling of hunger after eating is much more serious than it seems at first glance, and requires special attention from the patient. It is better to deal with this issue in a timely manner, as this will help to avoid serious disorders in the body.