Do Yourself a Favor and Provide Your Body With The Nutrition It’s Asking For

In today’s world of thinning waistlines and growing Insta picture feeds, it’s easy to ignore that growling stomach to get a perfectly flat tummy. But do you honestly think you can last like that forever?

Cristina Zaragoza/Unsplash | Several people ignore hunger to look good for social media, but is that really wise?

Think of it like this – you’re driving to a certain destination and your vehicle indicates low fuel. What would you do? Make a quick stop at the next gas station or push your car to its maximum limit till it completely breaks down? Well, that’s a no-brainer, right? So why treat your body like that? 

Food is the fuel your body needs for its proper functioning. To ensure that your body works efficiently, you not only need to eat at proper times but ensure that you eat healthy and nutritious food. Or else, you might just as well consider your body at the last of your priority list! 

Acknowledge your body’s needs

Hunger is not just a sensation, it’s an extremely complex process. Our bodies produce more than a dozen hormones that play a major role in promoting or suppressing this feeling. Therefore, instead of adopting the mind over matter approach regarding hunger, it’s better you listen to your body and its requirements. 

Brooke Lark/Unsplash | If you keep blocking hunger for too long, you can end up messing up your hormones and bodily functions

While you can easily find tips and tricks to outsmart or tackle your hunger sensations (all thanks to the internet), trust us when we say this, such methods aren’t just deceptive, they’re also detrimental to your hormones. Remember, every hormone in your body has its own role. One may activate or block another one. 

Speaking of hormones, do you know about leptin and ghrelin? Leptin is a satiety hormone birthed in our fat tissue. Its levels are usually higher at night time and are also affected by how well you sleep.

On the contrary, ghrelin is produced in the stomach. Its levels rise before meals in order to signal hunger, and then neutralize quickly once the body is fed. Now here’s a point of concern – ghrelin is a short-acting hormone, meaning it isn’t affected by how many calories you consumed the previous day. If you keep on ignoring its signals for too long, its levels will continue to rise leading to the condition of overeating. Surely that’s something you don’t want to indulge in!

So, why play around with your body like that? You never know what long-term damage you might do to your organs and internal systems.

Pablo Merchán Montes/Unsplash | Avoid punishing your body since it may cause long term damage. Eat well and stay happy to enjoy the best life

To sum it up

People often think that sabotaging their hunger is a good practice to maintain weight. TBH, that’s a completely wrong approach. By suppressing hunger, you’re deliberately pushing your body to its extreme and messing up with its biological nature. You must not forget that hunger isn’t a disorder; it’s the need of every living organism. If you constantly keep ignoring your body’s cues because you’re busy or simply want to look your best, soon your body will start giving up on you. Don’t be surprised then if you constantly feel lightheaded, lethargic, dizzy and what not. So, listen to your body so that it listens to you in the longer run.