HUNGER

Some people reading this book might be impressed with all this in­formation but are still wondering how they can deal with the seem­ing nonstop hunger that they have faced on every other eating plan they've tried. For most people, this will not be a problem. But first, appetite must be distinguished from hunger.

Hunger is the sensation of physical unease or discomfort that you experience when you haven't eaten in a while. Most people who have gone without food for twenty-four hours will experience this sensation. Prior to eating, they might even complain that they are "starving." There is actually a physical basis for this feeling. Severe hunger can be associated with powerful contractions of the stomach called hunger contractions. These contractions are greatly increased by a low level of blood sugar, and by the total absence of food. This

Refined Sugar: The Toxic Treat 57

sensation should not be a problem for you while following the guidelines in this book, even when you first start following them. No serious calorie restriction is recommended in this book, and most people will not have to worry so much about amounts as long as the other principles are followed. A significant amount of food can be eaten, although this concept should not be taken to unrea­sonable extremes. Seconds and thirds will not help you at all, and you should recall that too much food at a sitting is one factor that will reliably impair your digestion. Certainly, your weight loss would be helped by the addition of standard calorie restriction and regular exercise. However, the food types, the food combinations, when the food is eaten, and how the food is eaten remain the pri­mary considerations for achieving success.

Appetite is entirely different from hunger. Appetite is a craving or a desire. You can have a craving or a desire for just about any­thing, but you should now realize that this is not the same thing as experiencing physical discomfort in your gut because you are truly physiologically hungry. Much of appetite is habit, and how moti­vated and determined you are will be an important determinant of whether you can give up (or seriously restrict) a given food or food combination. But an appetite can be eliminated. When you follow the rules, you will find that some lifelong cravings will seem to "magically" (and mercifully) disappear or lessen.

Why would any lifelong craving for a certain food suddenly change? You need to consider again what was said earlier about in­sulin levels. When a large amount of insulin is suddenly released in response to a large spike of glucose into the blood, another conse­quence in addition to fat formation from that glucose is that the in­sulin effect will "overshoot," and roughly two to three hours later, your blood glucose will be lower than normal, or hypoglycemic. This sudden decrease of fuel to the brain (which requires adequate amounts of glucose at all times to function properly) will prompt you to immediately eat more carbohydrate to restore that glucose

58 Optimal Nutrition for Optimal Health

level. In other words, you will crave any one of a number of differ­ent carbohydrate (sugar-producing) foods.

To prevent these cravings, you must avoid foods with a high glycemic index. Then your blood sugar will not yo-yo up and down, and many of these cravings, or appetites, will not be so bothersome, or will even cease to exist. Think about the foods that you crave the most. Most of them, no doubt, are high-carbohydrate foods. You may think you have a craving for a steak from time to time, but that craving won't be nearly as compelling as the craving that you have for something sweet in between your carbohydrate-based meals and snacks.