If you’re low on willpower, you basically have to avoid encounters with your favorite excessively high-calorie dishes, which you can’t resist every time.
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The New Year holidays are already behind us, and the kilograms accumulated during the holidays are here with us. Losing weight, even breaking down, does not work! But your favorite jeans, it seems, will soon break. Common situation? Of course, our eating behavior is highly dependent on willpower. But not only. About the main hormones that affect a person’s appetite and what their production depends on (something has a chance to be corrected!) KP.RU was informed by a dietician, nutritionist, expert of the Doctor TV channel Natalya Nefyodova.
WHY WE BREAK AND OVEREAT
In any recommendations for losing weight, there is one rule: to get rid of excess weight, the main calories must be received in the morning, during breakfast. For those who eat a lot at night, production of the “hunger hormone” ghrelin jumps and the level of the “satiety hormone” leptin drops, one theory goes.
– In fact, not everything is so simple, – warns Natalya Nefyodova. – The functions of these two hormones are not so simple and more multifaceted. Let’s start with the ghrelin. This appetite-inducing hormone is produced primarily in the stomach. And it tells the brain that it’s hungry. Ghrelin levels are known to rise dramatically before meals. It then subsides within about 3 hours after eating.
However, it turned out that ghrelin can increase even if a person has eaten and is not hungry. “For example, passing a window with delicious eclairs, after a good meal, you can suddenly feel hungry again,” says the nutritionist. – Studies have shown that this is because ghrelin is involved in enhancing reward-seeking behavior. Also, we’re talking about getting pleasure from a variety of sources, be it food, sex, or even gambling. Plasma ghrelin concentration can be raised by signals that predict any type of reward. This can increase cravings for the source, in our case, cakes and other foods. And it can lead to a breakdown – overeating.
Hence the conclusion: if you have weak willpower, you should, in principle, avoid meeting your favorite excessively high-calorie dishes, before which you cannot resist every time “because” of the hormone ghrelin. Better yet, try to kick the addiction by switching to other, healthier sources of pleasure. Psychotherapy can also help with this.
TO THE POINT
What else affects the level of the “hunger hormone”?
– Time of day: in the afternoon its production increases.
– Age: the production of ghrelin decreases with old age.
– Gender: Women have higher levels of ghrelin than men.
– Lack of daily routine, stress leads to increased production of ghrelin.
– Lack of sleep, poor quality sleep also increase the level of the “hunger hormone”.
LEPTIN HORMONE: “STOP EATING!”
Leptin, also known as the “satiety hormone,” is produced by fat cells. It sends a signal to the brain to stop eating.
– When we lose weight, adipose tissue shrinks and hormone levels drop. This stimulates a strong appetite, as the brain receives a signal about the threat of starvation. Such a natural reaction can make it difficult for people who are losing weight to get rid of extra pounds, warns Natalia Nefyodova. From the editors – here it is, the real law of meanness, but what can you do.
And that’s not all unpleasant surprises. In people who are severely overweight, even high leptin levels, which indicate more than adequate fat stores, do not lead to decreased appetite. The brain simply does not respond to hormonal signals about saturation! This is called “leptin resistance.” The cause of it is still not clear to science, the expert throws up his hands.
Leptin, also known as the “satiety hormone,” is produced by fat cells. It sends a signal to the brain to stop eating.
Photo: Shutterstock
As Natalya Nefyodova explains, the following factors also affect the leptin level:
– gender: the production of hormones is higher in women than in men;
– age: decreases with old age;
– time of day: the peak of production occurs about 2 hours before sunrise, the lowest level – at night;
– poor sleep or lack of sleep: leptin levels decrease.
ASK THE SUBJECT
Is it better to have breakfast early or have breakfast late?
In weight loss advice, it is often stated that breakfast should be eaten within 30 minutes of waking up. Why? And what’s wrong with brunch?
“In fact, science has not yet fully decided whether it is good or bad to delay breakfast or skip it altogether in order to lose weight,” says dietitian Natalia Nefyodova. – Everything will depend on your schedule for the rest of the meals, the quantity and quality of sleep, activity level, etc.
For example. You ate late and got up early. Most likely, the reservations received the day before have not been sold out yet. You are absolutely right that you do not want to have breakfast, and it is not necessary, the doctor reassures him. But if you had dinner a couple of hours before bedtime and slept well, the body needs to replenish its glucose stores. In the absence of breakfast, in this case, the body goes into half-starvation mode. The brain tells the body to slow down to conserve energy and burn fewer calories. By the way, fat reserves will not be consumed immediately. Muscle mass will go first: producing glucose, our main source of energy for the brain. As a result, the weight loss you were hoping for may slow down. Also, skipping breakfast increases feelings of hunger and increases the risk of overeating.
“There are studies that show that eating in the morning within 1-2 hours after waking up increases metabolism, prevents overeating during the day, improves mood and promotes a joyful state,” says Natalia Nefyodova. – Plus, in a study of more than 30,000 adults, scientists found that those who regularly skip breakfast are missing out on vital nutrients. Namely, calcium, vitamin C and fiber: they are found in typical breakfast foods: whole grains, fruits, milk. These people are more likely to snack throughout the day.
On the other hand, there are studies that do not confirm that a daily breakfast alone contributes to weight loss. Maybe it’s not about him. It is that people who eat breakfast regularly tend to have better schedules, a higher socioeconomic status or healthier habits, explains Natalya Nefyodova. In a word, everything is individual and ultimately depends on your lifestyle as a whole.
