Why are we always hungry (even after a meal)?

Verified on 02/27/2024 by Alexane Flament, Editor

Do you constantly want to eat? Do you have major cravings? There may be several reasons why you have food urges.

Discover the main reasons that can lead to feelings of hunger!

You eat too many foods high in sugar or carbohydrates

Are you hungry even though you feel like you ate well during the previous meal? This can be explained by a excessive consumption of foods rich in sugars and carbohydrates and/orultra-processed foods.

And for good reason: these types of foods do not limit the production of hormones involved in regulating appetite and can even, on the contrary, promote the feeling of hunger.

To meet the body’s energy needs and meet the need for satietyit is better to favor vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, seeds and nuts.

You have lost weight recently

Have you lost weight lately? This could explain why you often feel hungry. Indeed, after losing weight, hormones present in the blood signal to the brain that energy reserves, in the form of fat, are exhausted.

Result ? The brain tells the body to conserve the body’s energy resources, which can stimulate the desire to eat.

You skip meals

For the same reasons explained above, skipping meals can trick the brain into making you want to eat in order to meet the body’s daily energy needs.

You are taking certain medications that make you gain weight

Certain medications are known to promote feelings of hunger and cause cravings.

This is the case, for example, of certain antidepressants, neuroleptics, sleeping pills and antihistamines, antidiabetics, antiepileptics, corticosteroids or even certain contraceptive pills containing estrogens and progestins.