Have you ever felt hungry shortly after eating a great meal? Or maybe your brain is sending false messages for you to consume food? I would like to suggest 10 ways to Curb Hunger Pains Naturally.
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Chia Cacao Collagen Smoothies are one way to curb hunger and satisfy.
Do you have unwanted hunger pains? Perhaps we’re bored? Lack energy? Or just LOVE food?!
Whatever your reason, it may not be de-coded in this post. However, I will suggest ideas on how to curb hunger, even after you have taken in the correct calories.
Hunger Buster: Holy Basil (Tulsi) Lemon Ginger Tea.
Organic Hibiscus Tea – a caffeine free herbal tea. Steep for hot tea or iced tea, it’s wonderful either way!
Hydrate
#1 – Drink More Water
How do you know you are drinking enough water? Try keeping track for a week, and see how you do. The average teenager and adult should aim for 8 – 8 ounces of water per day. Keep in mind the weather and your level of activity may require you drink more.
#2 – Add Kombucha to your daily routine
Brewing your own kombucha is simple and less expensive.
- Home brew Kombucha: Brewing Instructions here.
- Purchase a Kombucha Tea Starter Culture here.
#3 – Drink an antioxidant boost powder mid-morning or mid-afternoon.
One that I have been taking for two years now is called Youth Factor Superfood & Antioxidant Boost Powder. It gives me a little boost of energy in the middle of my day, and curbs hunger. I add this delicious powder packet to 8 oz of cold water. Another reason I love it is for the range of B vitamins it provides. The proprietary blend contains ingredients like beet root powder, pomegranate, bilberry fruit extract and many high antioxidant foods. Plus it has alkalizing properties, wonderful pH adjusters that optimize my body’s pH balance.
Consume More Protein & Less Sugar
#1 – Protein-Rich Diet
This is key to maintaining energy all day AND keeping you from feeling hungry. In trying to keep this simple; a natural chemical is made when our body breaks down protein. This natural chemical in turn triggers a hormone that tells our body we are content and satiated.
Visit: 10 Ways Your Body Benefits from Collagen!
Note: This is one reason why the paleo-diet or primal diet is common among those looking to lose weight.
- Epic Maple Glazed & Smoked Salmon Bites – 9 grams of protein
- Lesser Evil Power Curls – 6 grams per serving
- Go Raw Sprouted Seeds Snack – 6 grams per serving
- Snack Mates Kids – Chicken & Maple – 7 grams of protein
#2 – Consume Less Sugar
Start the new day with little to no sugar AND end your day with less sugar.
Fast metabolizing sugars like white sugar, fructose (including fruit), and corn syrup increase our appetites. Refined sugars and even fructose can enter our blood stream quickly and cause our blood sugar to become unbalanced. Unfortunately, “sugar-free” can have the same effect.
7 Foods That Make You MORE Hungry by Kathleen Trojer
10 Ways to Curb Hunger Pains Naturally
- Drink water! It is important to stay adequately hydrated every day.
- Add more protein. Ideally consume protein every four hours to curb that hunger! Keep reading for suggestions.
- Eat slowly. If you’re a mom, you might be guilty of eating too fast. I am! Allow your stomach to message the brain that you’re taking in adequate food.
- Watch your sugar intake. This includes sugar added to prepared foods and even fructose. Sugar enters our blood stream quickly and sends messages to our brain that we need more (sugar!).
- Exercise daily. Your whole body will benefit from walking, weight lifting, yoga, hiking, and swimming. Our bodies function best on movement and maintaining muscle strength.
- Include spices in your main meals. Ginger, turmeric, cayenne pepper, and chili powder all aid in satisfying our hunger. Ginger tea is satiating and curbs hunger.
- Balance your blood sugar. Often you’ll experience a “starved feeling” when your blood sugar is off balance. Balancing your blood sugar is a priority, I suggest eating protein.
- Drink Green tea. This tea is high in antioxidants and aids in controlling our blood sugar.
- Manage stress. UGH! This is a tough one and it often makes our bodies respond out of a need to relieve stress rather than curb hunger.
- Avoid artificial sweeteners. These sweeteners mess with our blood sugar and insulin levels and send messages to our brain that we are hungry! Alcohol sweeteners like xylitol and swerve can have the same effect on the blood sugar.
Manage Stress
How we manage stress effects many areas of our life! Stress can bring on hunger pains when in reality we need a non-food solution to our problems and stresses.
Find relief with these 18 Ways to Manage Stress in your Life!
Why do we get hungry when we are under stress? Stress triggers hormones that cause us to feel hungry. You are not imagining it! Getting outdoors is a refreshing way to manage stress. When the weather is too cold, pick a few yoga poses you like; they relax and stretch those muscles.
Eat Chocolate
Yes, you read that correctly! Real chocolate or cacao has wonderful health benefits. One of those benefits is it curbs hunger and is satisfying.
Look for brands that contain 70% or higher cacao content. The less sugar with simple ingredients is always better for us!
- Evolved 72% Cacao Primal Chocolate Bar
- Evolved Classic Coconut Butter Cups
- Raaka Chocolate Maple & Nibs Chocolate Bar
- Heavenly Organics Almond Chocolate Honey Patties
Importance of Knowing our Bodies
We’re busy and often do not take the time to listen to messages from our body. I encourage you to take a moment and examine a few possible reasons for your hunger or reason for eating.
Please do not be hard on yourself! When I reflect on this list, I know their are times I need more hydration, to eat my meals slower, managed stress without food and especially refrain from consuming food that contains alcohol sugars (aka “sugar-free” food).
Read down the list and start today with curbing unwanted hunger pains! It would be wonderful to hear which way(s) worked best for you!
Pursing Better Health Together,
Ashley says
Great info! I know I need to remember to eat slowly. I tend to eat while I’m doing other things which prevents me from being mindful of what I’m doing. I need to start taking a time out and really enjoy my meals. And I love that you said to eat more chocolate! We all need more chocolate in our lives!
Michelle says
Thank you Ashley! Glad you enjoyed it. You can always start with eating your dark chocolate slowly. 🙂