How Do You Control Your Appetite?
Having a diet high in protein might be just the fix you need.
If you’ve started a weight loss plan…or you’ve been on one for quite some time…
Then you know how hard it may be to control hunger throughout the day. Hunger can happen for a number of reasons.
A sudden drop in calories…not eating enough…and sometimes being dehydrated can lead to hunger feelings.
But the most likely reason why you’re always hungry when you start a diet has to do with hormones.
You see, there are hormones that “talk” to your brain, and tell you when you need to eat, or when you don’t.
And when these hormones are unbalanced, it could result in that hungry feeling.
But there is a way to stop this feeling from occurring. And it’s really pretty simple:
It’s to increase your protein intake.
Studies show that when you reduce the number of calories coming from carbs and fats and then up your protein intake, it may better control your appetite, therefore keeping those hungry feelings away. There are two main reasons for this.
Reason one – increasing your protein intake can help you achieve a better balance for your blood sugar levels. More stable blood sugar can cut down on hunger feelings.
Reason two – having a diet high in protein can be helpful is by balancing out your “hunger” and satiety hormones.
Satiety simply means satisfaction and you have specific hormones that help with this.
Protein has been shown to increase two potent gut “satiety” hormones, glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) and cholecystokinin (CCK).
By increasing these hormones, you could have fewer hunger feelings and better overall meal satisfaction.
So…if you’re just starting out on a diet, and you’re feeling hungry all the time, you may need to increase your protein intake.
And you can do this by eating more lean cuts of meat, fish, free-range poultry, protein shakes, and of course, plant-based protein sources.
If you’re able to substitute some of the fat or carbs in your diet with protein, it may lead to better meal satisfaction thanks in large part to the increase in appetite-suppressing hormones.
If you would like some help on how to get more protein in your diet, read our article on how to pack your diet high in protein click here to read it, I hope it helps.
