Mindful Eating: Physical Hunger Versus Emotional Hunger

"Hunger is a feeling experienced when one has a desire to eat. It originates in the hypothalamus and is released through receptors in the liver." This is the definition given by Wikipedia. Does this definition really help us understand hunger? Yes, from a physiological perspective it does but what it does not include or consider are the emotional or sensory aspects so many of us experience on a regular basis associated with eating. Mindful Eating can help us to recognise the different hungers we may experience. Can food fill every type of hunger? Although the 5 senses are the main ways in which we experience hunger it is also worth noting there are other ways our eating patterns can occur.

Real Hunger: This is true physiological hunger your stomach is communicating with you. Mindful eating allows us to experience this fully. This is when you experience hunger pangs and your stomach feels empty and makes rumbling and gurgling noises. Extreme hunger can sometimes cause you to feel light headed, may make you feel irritable or tired and you may also have difficulty concentrating. Here the need is to nourish and feed the body.

Emotional Hunger: This is when you eat to make yourself feel better. The need here is more about making yourself feel better, taking away pain or just trying to feel something. People often comfort eat chocolates or crisps or sweets when they feel sad, anxious, depressed etc. Many of us do not follow the process of mindful eating and when we eat foods in a mindless way describe a feeling of emptiness inside and this can often be confused with physical hunger. This type of hunger can often be experienced as a craving and can be a much more powerful feeling than real physical hunger. It tends to focus on just one food type and occurs more in the mouth than the stomach and no matter how much we eat the emptiness never really goes away.

The following lists give some of the different signs of physical and emotional hunger

Physical signs of hunger:

gurgling stomach
weakness
lack of energy
gnawing feeling in stomach
empty feeling in stomach
light headed
headache
Emotional signs of hunger:
eating in response to an emotional situation
controlling what you eat, by only eating a certain amount or depriving yourself
eating too little and still feeling hungry when finished
going to the fridge, opening the door and not really knowing why you are there
being physically hungry but denying yourself food
never feeling satisfied, no matter how much you eat
eating food on autopilot
eating when you feel excited or good about yourself

Knowing the difference between physical and emotional hunger can help with weight loss. As you begin to recognise different kinds of hunger you experience, you only eat when you are physically hungry. Here's a tip, the next time you eat something just stop, take a breath and ask yourself, "What hunger do I feel?" If you are physically hungry, then go right ahead and eat something. If not then try to work out what you feel and deal with it by taking the appropriate action. If you feel tired then go and take a nap, if you feel anxious or agitated, then sit down and meditate for 10 minutes. Learn how to really listen to what your body tells you. This is how you begin to reap the rewards of mindful eating.

Jeni MacNab BSc and RGN is a UK based health and weight management coach specializing in mindful eating and personal development. She is also a published author. Jeni is dedicated to empowering women to change how they feel about themselves through mindful eating and weight management. If you are someone who has become exhausted and disillusioned with different weight loss programmes and would like to find a long-term solution that works, let Jeni guide you through the process of Mindful Eating. When you understand how this process works, you will be amazed with the results that appear in all areas of your life!

Get your FREE Mindful Eating Action Plan at http://www.peaceofmindscotland.com which will walk you through the initial process giving helpful tips and exercises to try. Get your FREE copy today, plus Jeni's regular newsletter.

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.