True Hunger?

Question

How many of you think you really experience true hunger?

OR

Do you eat because of conditioning. It is meal time (breakfast, lunch or dinner) therefore I must eat. It is a social thing to do, others are eating like at a party or a movie and then so must I. It has been "X" amount of hours since I last ate so I must be hungry.

Do you think you would be more successful at losing weight if you could tell the difference between true hunger and habit?

Answer 1

What a smart question. I say im starving after I havent eaten for 15 hours...which doesnt often happen unless I have to fast for a medical reason. I feel starving and I think im starving because my mind constantly will focus on my stomatch. Now say if I did not eat for 24 hours then I would probably think about eating alot more often and your probably only really starving when you stop thinking about food alltogether and slowly die. So of course people condition themselves to think that they are starving whenever they get those hunger pangs..but of course they are not. I now in my life am barely hungry...I forget about food all day long and think "i must be hungry" but I dont feel hungry until I actually start eating and then think "wow i was hungry" so of course its reletive.But some people may lose weight thinking they could tell the difference between true habit and hunger, but at the same time the mind can play tricks on you and you end up eating nothing all day and then subsequently you will probably screw up your metabolism and burn less calories when sitting so its better to eat small meals all day.

Answer 2

There are times when I have not eaten in a few days that I can experience hunger, but I think it's more of a body reflex or the pipes in the body starting to shrink that gives the hunger pangs.

I don't eat much and I do it out of habit. I can say though that if I'm working on a project, and because of nerves that I'll feed my face with junk food, but then later I pay for that like being up all night.

I feel that living "light" makes me feel a lot better, and a few years ago I began the vegetarian diet and I reached that goal. This has also allowed me to lose a few pounds.

My mother used to tell me that "if you don't eat you won't be able to think right" (which sounded right), and "clean your plate; think about all those starving children out there" (which never made sense to me).

I think true hunger is lack of vitamins and minerals that the body needs, plus bulk/fiber to make the body work. Without those one can tell from the person's malnutrition and disease that they are hungry.

Answer 3

LOL, I had to laugh reading this. I think that if I wasn't told the sky is blue then it wouldn't be. I think that there is no true hunger either. I was taught that when my stomach gurgles it means that I am hungry, NOT. I could have just eaten or I simply have gas! Food to me is just something else you/we are told we have to eat/do. No I am not anexoric or bullemic I am simply stating the fact that I was brought up to eat lunch at noon and diner at five. Breakfast doesn't happen. I eat simply because I am bored, or depressed or what have you, habbit. Think about it, you can get all your nutrition from liquid and not need a bit of food to live. I believe it's programed into us and therefor when it's "time" to consume food we relate certain things, grumbling, to hunger. I would lose weight Big Time if I just stopped listening to what I have been programed to believe. Good question!

Answer 4

TRUE HUNGER!
In Yoga it is taught that when one is truly hungry the sensation of hunger will be felt in the Throat not in the Stomach. This is a Truth. Matter of fact any time your stomach is telling you to eat is the exact wrong time to eat. Eat concentrated foods (herbs) and take little cooked or raw foods!

Answer 5

i only experience true hunger if i go 12 - 14 hours without eating, even if it is minimal hunger. at 24 hours, it gets serious. after 36, i'd describe the feeling as "starving," even though i know i could go longer. i haven't yet though. i dont like to fast randomly because it messes with your body, but anyway, yes, i do believe that we americans wouldn't be nearly so fat as an average if we ate only when actually hungry.

Answer 6

I think conditioning could be physical and mental. The body itself might react to certain stimuli like sunlight, heat, etc and produce certain chemical that stimulate feelings of hunger in the brain.

Also social conditioning also plays a part in what and when we eat. It would a good ( although cruel ) experiments if some young babies were to be conditioned differently and study their behaviour

Answer 7

you may have a point there as to ritual or social eating... but your body needs food to maintain its energy levels....if you wait til you are truly hungry that means that you are starving yourself(slightly...not dangerous) and when you do eat your body will store most of the food as fat because you have tricked it into thinking it is going to be a while until your next meal so it has to stock up. Eating small meals often when you are not hungry is good to boost your metabolism

Answer 8

This is a no brainer. Definately!!!!!
That's why hunger supressants do not really work - we have to break the habits of eating.

Answer 9

Sometimes I think i'm hungry but i'm just really bored at work. so I've been trying to just wait until my stomach feels really hungry.