Hunger Hormones - Part 3
How to make friends with these hormones
Befriending your hunger hormones is a very lovely thing. You can feel satisfied after eating, your blood sugar stays stable, and your body can balance your energy stores.
The trouble is, many/most diets have messed these hormones up, so it’s not a wonder why many feel hungry all the time, even after eating. But balance can be found! So, let’s look at how.
HOW TO INCREASE YOUR GHRELIN AND LEPTIN SENSITIVITY:
1. Believe the meal you're eating is satisfying -
I had trouble getting my head around this one, so I’ve put the link to the study if you need some more convincing. As we learned from the video in the intro, if you believe that the meal you're about to eat is enough food, then your ghrelin levels will decrease more than if you believe it's a "diet" or "low cal" meal. It's another example of your body hating deprivation .
Here's the study if you’d like to read more: https://www.npr.org/.../mind-over-milkshake-how-your...
One of the ways I do this with my meals is by eating dinner using a smaller side plate. Honestly, this felt really strange at first, but I quickly realized that it was the perfect amount of food for me. I can fill my side plate up to be bursting with food, and I feel totally satisfied afterward. Now, when I use a normal dinner plate for dinner, I find I eat too much AND I don’t feel like there’s much on my plate (so much empty space!). It’s an annoying combo that I avoid at all costs.
Try it out and let me know what you think – how does eating off a side plate feel to you?
2. Eat slowly and chew your food really well –
Give ghrelin time to tell your brain that you’ve eaten by eating sloooowly. About 15 mins to eat a meal is ideal.
Often, once someone starts eating slowly, they realize that they need less food to feel wonderfully satisfied…sometimes half as much. You may or may not be eating more than your body wants, you might be filling your plate perfectly, or you might be taking more than needed. The only way to know is to sloooooow down and chew your food. Your food will also taste better :).
But what if you don’t like to eat cold food? Use the smaller plate suggestion above and keep the rest of your food warm in the kitchen. That way if you’d like more, you can grab it while it’s still hot and lovely :).
3. Prioritize your sleep –
Sleep plays a big role in your hunger hormones. Do your best to get to sleep at a reasonable time each night and if you're struggling with sleep (you're not alone in that!), spend some time experimenting with different options until you find something that helps you sleep.
Check out the Sleep Masterclass or send me a message if you'd like some sleep support
4. Get out and move -
Exercise is a great way to increase your hunger hormone sensitivity. If sleep eludes you, go for a walk or get some movement each day. It'll help your hormone sensitivity and might help you sleep as well
Weight training is particularly good at reducing insulin and leptin resistance and it doesn’t seem to trigger as much hunger as cardio does. (cardio is still good, just don’t overdo it :). Get out and build some muscle!
5. Avoid high-fructose corn syrup –
Frequently labeled "glucose/fructose" and it’s found in most commercial sweetened beverages. This little manufactured sugar is really hard on our cells and can increase leptin and insulin resistance. Having a bit of high fructose corn syrup occasionally (like around the holidays) isn't a big deal, just avoid it as a regular thing .
Especially avoid it in beverages, your body really struggles to deal with that HUGE surge of glucose and fructose. Refined fructose has been connected to leptin resistance, so that’s another good reason to avoid it.
6. Enjoy more whole food carbs –
You don’t need to avoid carbs even if your insulin or leptin levels are high! Actually, whole food carbs contain tons of fibre that help you feel full faster (lowering ghrelin) along with all of the nutrients your body needs to balance your insulin/glucose dance and they slowly trickle into your bloodstream (no surges).
A glorious serving of roasted root veggies with brussels sprouts is a favourite meal addition for me in the winter. Delicious!
Supplements/foods to help with insulin resistance
The research on ghrelin and leptin is so new that there isn’t a lot of info on specific foods or supplements that can help. But we know a lot more about insulin resistance, and these foods/supplements can be really helpful :)
1. Chromium (200 - 600mcg per day) - this is a trace mineral and a common deficiency. It literally fixes your insulin receptors
2. Cinnamon – as a spice or a supplement, cinnamon helps to lower blood sugar. Happily, it’s a delicious addition to any sweet treat!
3. Berberine – this is a plant compound (alkaloid) that can help to lower blood sugar. It has a long history of use in Chinese medicine and has recently become popular in North America. It can cause a major reduction in blood sugar levels, so be careful unless you know your blood sugar is high.
In Conclusion
Hunger hormones can feel complex but balancing them can be as easy as adding a few habits to your day. There’s so much in our culture that makes it hard for our body to find balance and the solution is simple – more whole foods, less refined.
Do you feel like you understand these hormones better and what to do? Let me know by email or below in the comments. I’d love to know what you think :)
Got any questions or comments? Comment below, jump to our private Facebook Group, or the Ask Lisa page :).