Nighttime Hunger
There are researches and studies that will show that a lot of healthy people eat and consume the same number of calories like the overweight ones. So how come the overweight ones tend to be more overweight that those who are healthy? It has something to do with the fact that overweight persons are experiencing nighttime hunger which leads them to consuming more calories than they do during the day.
And it seems that eating at night is somewhat easier to do. We tend to eat what we want especially because we are alone and no one is there to check on what we eat. We just sit comfortably in front of the TV with the perfect chips or popcorn and, viola! We eat luxuriously. When in fact we have to understand that it is only the times when we are eating that cause us to gain weight but more particularly so depending on what type of food we like to eat at night.
Fact is: nighttime is the most sedimentary time of the entire day. It should be the time when we are supposed to consume calories less since we will not be doing anything more to burn them. What is even more alarming is the type of favorite foods that we consume during those times; potato chips, ice cream, desserts, popcorn, and even chocolates. And then sometimes, this happens right after dinner only.
Nighttime eating can be considered a disorder that is not emotionally-based but rather a syndrome that shows important changes in the hormonal levels. For some night eaters, the hormones that help in having regular sleep are found in much lesser quantities than what is really normal. Another thing is that there is no rise in the hormone that has the ability to suppress hunger. Hence the normal controls of our body that is responsible in helping us limit our food intake at night are not performing their duties very well.
That is why it is essential that nighttime eaters are aware of what they can do in order to deal and eventually fight this disorder. The following are suggestions that you may want to try in order that you can control the urge to eat more than what is needed, especially at night.
Have a distraction, something that will attract you away from nighttime hunger. Do something else when hunger attacks you. If you had taken dinner already, tendency is that you would like to eat more just because you are bored, so find something better to do, something that will take away you mind from eating again. Read a book, take a walk, call your friend, or clean any part of the house. These activities can help you forget that you were hunger and looking for a snack.
You can opt to change what you eat at day time so that you can avoid nighttime hunger. Try eating more calories during the day. In the process of your losing weight, when you eat fewer calories in the day, chances are you may consume more during the night, or it will make you binge altogether. It would make a difference if you would eat a great bulk of calories during the day, since you will still be able to burn it with your daily activities, and then make yourself a light dinner with some veggies and fruits going with it. Or better these fruits and veggies can be your snack later.
It would be better if you will go to bed early. The later you decide to call it a night, the greater is the risk that you will be hungry. Studies show that people who have enough sleep has the tendency to consume less calories during the day. Do not forget to brush your teeth also, this will tell you that it is time to stop eating and go to bed instead.
It would be wise if you will eat dinner in the dining table itself. Do not do it in front of the TV or even your computer so as you will not get distracted from your eating. If you are not aware of how much you are eating because you are distracted, tendency is that you will eat more or you won’t feel full. And this will lead to nighttime hunger.
Finally, if you really need to eat at night because of a pressing need to, try eating healthy snacks instead of the usual chips and sweets. Grab something high in fiber and protein, these will take a long time to digest therefore you will have a feeling of a full stomach and not eat more.
These suggestions are just some that you can try in order to face and deal nighttime hunger. Once you make this a habit, it will slowly change your lifestyle and you will surely get a positive result.
