How to stop being hungry: our 10 tips to limit this feeling
Contents
- How to stop feeling hungry: our 10 tips to limit this feeling
- 1. Stock up on low calorie fillers
- 2. Drink water: an effective hunger suppressant
- 3. Avoid eating sugary foods
- 4. Focus on proteins
- 5. Have breakfast and don’t skip meals
- 6. Eat fiber
- 7. Exercise
- 8. Distract your mind
- 9. Make sure you rest well
- 10. Brush your teeth and tongue
1. Stock up on low calorie fillers
Always keep a selection of low calorie foods in your refrigerator and pantry that can easily be turned into hunger-busting snacks or tasty appetizers.
You might try the following alternatives:
- Salad with balsamic dressing
- Vegetable sticks with sauce or tzatziki (or make a yogurt sauce by mixing 1 pot of low-fat yogurt with 1 crushed garlic clove, 1 teaspoon of mint and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice);
- A portion of dried fruit, surprisingly satiating in small quantities;
- A low-fat soup;
- A slice of lean ham;
- A slice of wholemeal crusty bread with low-fat soft cheese;
- A bowl of fresh fruit salad or a piece of fresh fruit; apples are great for appeasing hunger;
- A jar of Greek yogurt
- Prepare a mix of walnuts and almonds and proportion them in portions of 20-30 gr. ready to be consumed when needed.
2. Drinking water: an effective hunger suppressant
Before choosing something to nibble on, it would be good to know if you are really hungry or thirsty.
It’s easy to confuse thirst and hunger, resulting in many people looking for a snack when all they really need is a glass of water.
Water is needed for every chemical reaction in the body, including fat burning. And it will not only help you fill up, but it will also do wonders for your skin and hair.
To make the most of this water feature, opt for sparkling water, the bubbles will help you fight hunger pangs. 3. Avoid eating sugary foods
Choosing foods with a low glycemic index is very important to fight hunger.
Foods with a low glycemic index (GI) slowly release sugar into your blood, providing you with constant energy. This will make you feel satisfied for longer and therefore you will be less likely to want to have a snack.
Conversely, foods with a high glycemic index cause a rapid but brief rise in blood sugar, leaving you lacking energy and making you feel hungry in a short time, so that you end up having a snack.
Bottom line: Eating foods with a low glycemic index prevents fluctuations in blood sugar, helping you to better control your appetite because you will feel full for longer.
Among the foods with a low glycemic index we find most fruits and vegetables, but also wholemeal pasta, whole grains, lentils, beans, nuts, brown rice and basmati and wholemeal bread. 4. Focus on Protein
Eating small amounts of lean meat, chicken, fish, dairy products and eggs can help keep you fuller for longer.
Research shows that protein-rich foods help the body feel fuller, and experience the feeling of fullness that comes at the end of a meal; the more full you feel after eating, the less likely you are to feel hungry between meals.
Scientists are still investigating this aspect. However, you are likely to feel full longer if you swap a sweet snack for a salty snack.
If, for example, you find that you are hungry around 4 o’clock, it will probably be due to a drop in blood sugar after lunch. You could try incorporating more protein at lunch, for example cheese, fish (tuna, sardines and mackerel are all readily available canned), eggs, grilled chicken breast fillet. You can also include healthy fats like an avocado. 5. Eat breakfast and don’t skip meals
Skipping breakfast (or any other meal) can cause hunger pangs that will prompt you to seek out chocolate, chips and fizzy drinks to boost your declining energy levels.
Studies conducted at the University of Leeds have shown that eating early in the day helps prevent people from getting hungry, losing control and overeating in the evening.
By spreading out your meals evenly throughout the day, including breakfast, you will feel satisfied for longer and will be less likely to succumb to hunger pangs.
Oats for breakfast, along with milk or yogurt, could be a good start. 6. Eat Fiber
Always get your fill of fiber!
When it comes to overcoming hunger, replace everything that is white with everything that is darker.
There are several reasons why high-fiber foods help fight hunger.
First, foods that contain a lot of fiber generally take longer to chew. In addition to helping you feel more satisfied, this automatically slows down the rate at which you eat, giving your brain time to register the feeling of fullness, so that you are less likely to overeat.
Secondly, fiber can hold water, so foods that contain a lot of fiber help us feel full.
Best of all, because fiber is harder to digest, it stays longer in your stomach and makes you feel full longer, so you are less likely to want to snack between meals. 7. Exercise
Not all sport makes you hungry, as is claimed.
But as with everything related to our body, it is not as black and white as we would like to think. There is a complex relationship between exercise and appetite.
For exercise to reduce appetite, it must be at high intensity (more than 70% of your maximum effort).
Research comparing moderate to high-intensity exercise has shown that only high-intensity exercise reduced appetite.
In some, but not all, studies, high-intensity exercise also reduced food intake soon thereafter.
Exercise temperature can also affect appetite and food intake.
After exercising in cold water, people seem to have more appetite than exercising in hot water. This may be a response to the decrease in the body’s core temperature, as eating is a way to increase metabolism and therefore body heat.
Conversely, exercise in hot temperatures can actually suppress appetite as a result of changes in hormone signaling to the brain. 8. Distract your mind
When you feel that pinch of hunger, distract yourself, and you can also do it with actions that can fool your brain.
Make an herbal tea, drink a glass of flavored water, or a tea.
Start doing something else to ward off the thought of hunger; for example, you could take the opportunity to go for a run outdoors. 9. Make sure you rest well
Make sure you rest well and long. Sleep plays an important role in overall health and well-being. One of the things that rest can affect is your appetite.
According to a recent study, disrupted sleep patterns can cause an increase in appetite.
Lack of sleep has also been associated with increased ghrelin levels in the body. Ghrelin is the hormone that stimulates the feeling of hunger. This can create a domino effect in which you wake up feeling hungry both at night and in the morning.
Additionally, insufficient sleep has been linked to poor blood sugar control. A few nights of insufficient sleep can significantly alter your blood sugar level, triggering some hunger at night or in the morning. So, if you’ve ever wondered why do I wake up hungry in the morning, this may be your answer. 10. Brushing your teeth and tongue
Brushing your teeth and tongue can suppress your appetite without food. The mint flavor of the toothpaste discourages most people from eating.
Chances are you won’t eat chocolate after brushing your teeth because it won’t taste good. Try this trick!
