To Eat or not to Eat: the Thirst Question

Posted on September 06, 2021 by Niels Steeman, One of Thousands of Health and Fitness Coaches on Noomii.

While the header may sounds a bit awkward, there is some truth in it when wanting go loose some kilos. I am talking about the inner battle between hunger versus thirst.

Although the wish for caloric intake or adding some liquid to your system are defined differently, the mission control of signalling your body for a fill-up is actually the same. The hypothalamus, a part of your brain, is solemnly responsible for controlling hunger and thirst based on signals from the body.

These feelings – feeling a bit faint, a gnarling little rumble in your stomach, perhaps the first signs of dizziness or an upcoming headache – are connected to your body signalling “give me some fuel!”. And it is not always clear for the hypothalamus which signal is the right one.

You may just be thirsty when you think you need to open the fridge and dig into leftovers or snacks. Just looking for a pick-me-up to get back on the energy track. The body is much more sensitive to a drop in hydration levels compared to getting some yummy in your tummy. Even a 1.5% drop in a body’s hydration level can be a reason to feel those earlier-described symptoms. And we do lose more fluid than calories daily to offset our homeostatic balance.

Contrary to what many may say, we have more energy stored to keep us going for quite some time. The drive to eat is largely influenced by your environment, habitual munching traits, or when stress is taking over. A battle of hunger versus thirst may emerge. Yet, are you genuinely hungry?

Give the following a go.

Once you feel the urge to eat, grab a glass of (soda) water. Don’t go for coffee, tea, soft drink, energy drink or alcohol. Once finished, wait for 15-20 minutes and see if the feeling of hunger is still there. By using a scaling technique (from 1 to 10), you determine whether the same hunger sensations are still there. When you give yourself a score of 8 or higher, where 10 is “I am famished!”, permit yourself to grab something to eat. Minimally processed, whole foods still reign supreme.

By naturally spicing up your water with lemon, lime, fresh fruits, or mint, the chances of you losing that hunger feeling may even benefit this urge not to eat just yet.

It is vitally important that you are honest with yourself, fine-tune your environment and attune with your hunger feelings. A habit that you already have in you.

And it can be that simple.

“Always, through my whole life, I’ve had a thirst for knowledge” | Emmitt Smith