Diet Tips

Like hunger, appetite, satiety and body weight play together.


The body weight is in equilibrium when the energy content equivalent to the energy needs of the food. Those who eat too much, sooner or later takes on more weight, because the excess calories are stored as fat in the body. Actually, everyone should be able to adjust the amount of food to its needs. This means that you only eat when you feel hungry and aware of the feeling of satiety. This sounds simple, but everyone is struggling with too many pounds knows that play while eating a lot of other factors play an important role, such as boredom, loneliness, habit, etc.

Hunger is a sensation, which is controlled by the brain. Lack of food triggers the desire for food (food drive). This leads to the food drive food intake and then possibly also to saturation. What are the mechanisms for triggering the onset of hunger and satiety are responsible is not yet known in detail. It is clear, in any case in the development of appetite, several factors are involved.

The regulation of appetite in the brain takes place in the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus is the most important control center of the autonomic system (responsible for self-running intra-physical adjustment and regulatory processes, the man at will can not be directly affected). Thus, the hypothalamus controls in addition to the regulation of hunger and satiety as well as the sleep cycle, the maintenance of body temperature and blood pressure and sexual and reproductive behavior.

 If the satiety center (middle hypothalamus) destroyed in animals in the experiment, this leads to an unreasonable seizure and excessive weight gain. However, if the hunger center (lateral hypothalamus) is destroyed, this causes loss of appetite and weight loss.

The regulation of food intake on hunger and satiety is an extremely complex process in which different factors are involved. Would be contrary as hormones (eg insulin or cholecystokinin), nerve stimuli (eg, distension of the esophagus and stomach), or nutrient levels in the blood (blood sugar) information to the hypothalamus. Even stimuli to the senses (smell, appetizing appearance), genetic factors (leptin) and psychosocial and socio-cultural factors have an impact on hunger and satiety.