Hunger: Why Can't We Turn it Off?

            It is now generally recognized that hunger is not turned off after a specific amount of calories. A recent study demonstrated that there is no link between appetite and calorie intake. Lead research Dr. Bernard Corfe from the Molecular Gastroenterology Research Group at Sheffield and his team reviewed 462 studies examining the association between perceived appetite and energy intake and found that less than 5 % of these studies found a true statistical correlation between the two variables. So what exactly does this mean? Well, essentially, if you feel you are so hungry that you can eat a whole horse, you’re probably not going to. Hormones are what modulate hunger. Hormones are friendly little chemicals released in the body that run our life. What happens is that hormones are released from the stomach when it is empty, and this tells us that its time to eat again. It’s kind of like having an internal gas light that tells us when to fill up the car. The authors of this study warn consumers to not be be fooled by the food industry into thinking that eating certain prepackaged meals will make you not hungry. Remember, hunger is hormonally driven, and we can’t control this. Rather than buying special meals, why not consume a varied, pigmented diet and let the hormones tell you when you’re hungry and full? Let’s stop planning our meals around our “busy” lives, and plan our lives around our wonderful meals with the people we care about.

See the full article at: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/313620.php