problems after eating

[phantasmagoric]

lately, i've been having problems after eating. 30-40 minutes after i eat, i start feeling hungry again. even if i eat a good, full meal with a tall glass of water. i try drinking more fluids, but it doesn't help. that feeling just lingers until its time for me to eat again. i don't understand why this is happening. it's been occuring for the last 2 weeks. does anyone have any ideas?

[Gaelen]

Not eating enough fats with the meal? Fats contribute to feeling satisfied.

[phantasmagoric]

i've tried adding more fats to meals, but i still get the same effect. its as if my body isn't recognizing that i just ate.

[Gaelen]

the next question, and I know it's a problem for some people--
do you eat slowly, allowing the meal to take at LEAST 30 minutes from start to finish? Do you take your time (it takes at least 20 minutes for your brain to begin to realize that your stomach is getting food.)

Eating too fast, not chewing each piece of food thoroughly, etc. is the other thing most often mentioned in contributing to hunger feelings within an hour after eating.

[phantasmagoric]

haha no. i've always been a fast eater. unless i'm eating in a social atmosphere (which is rare!). making a meal take 30 minutes would be like torture for me, since they usually only take me about 10.

[Belfrybat]

Just a thought, although not a very pleasant one, I'm afraid. Have been checked for ulcers? I've heard that folks who are in the beginning stages of getting ulcers always feel hungry. A friend described it as a "gnawing feeling".

[Relief]

I used to get exactly what you have described--it feels just like hunger only starts a short while after a meal. Mine was linked to dairy consumption--i.e. lactose intolerance, and to wheat. I coulnd't eat even the amount of wheat in a small peice of lo carb bread or I would have the reaction you describe. you may be sensitive to something you are still eating. It could be wheat or dairy which are often prime offenders, or something else-- soy? some other grain? peanuts? My vitamins can also cause that reaction if I don't take enough food with them. have you started eating anyting new lately?

My symptoms eventually resolved.

[gitfiddle]

I'll get that with apples or eggs. They're both a little gassy, so maybe that accounts for it. I would also suggest that it might be what you eat. It could be helpful to keep notes and see if there's a pattern. Have you added any particular food to your diet in the past two weeks? Sugar alchohols? New vegetables? Even a change in restaurants? I dislike the tummy rumbles because sometimes it's all I need to rationalize extra food to "settle it down".

[phantasmagoric]

hmmm....

i haven't added anything new to my diet in the last couple of weeks. although, i have changed the times of day that i eat meals since i no longer have to work around a schedule.

as far as ulcers go, the only symptoms i experience that are similar to ulcer symptoms are bloating and occasional upset stomach. but both of these are only occasional; not frequent.

[Gabriel Guzman]

I know this is an obvious question... but I'll ask anyway. Are you getting your minimum protein intake or a little more than that?

[Gaelen]

well...all of the other possibilies aside, I'm still going to go back to time you spend eating. If you're rushing through your meal like an INDY 500 pit stop rather than a routine maintenance session, you're not giving your endocrine system time to properly activate and send the 'I'm full' message and let that take effect. Relaxing and giving yourself more time to eat is one of the simplest of the things suggested as far as trying it out. You can even do it retrospectively--when you DID eat in a social situation, where the meal takes 30 minutes or longer, did you experience the same issues with being hungry within an hour of finishing the meal? If not, putting an end to rushing through your meals would be the first thing I'd try when you're eating at home.

BTW, eating *anything* too fast can also cause indigestion, gas, bloating and an upset stomach...remember, a meal should give you time to relax and re-energize your body, not a sprint from kitchen to table to dishwasher. It's a routine maintenance, not a race car pit stop...but YMMV. ;)

[dvdmon]

Ok, since no one else has said it, I'll propose a probably remote possiblity - tape worm? In any case, I think your attempts to deduce what the problem is, add fat, water, etc. to see if it might be a dietary problem rather than a physiological one is good, but you might want to go see a GI doc to see if they can determine if there's something physiological that's causing the problem...

[Gaelen]

Phantasmagoric, I just re-read your first post and noticed that this is recent onset. Any chance, in addition to the suggestions Dvdmon just made, that you could be pregnant? Appetites do change there, too.

[phantasmagoric]

lol the possibilities are endless aren't they? :p

i've been trying gaelen's advice and trying to eat more slowly. and to help with that, i've been taking mid-meal breaks, and drinking a glass of water. and so far, from what i can tell, it seems to be helping. i really didn't realize how fast i was eating my meals before. i inhaled them!

i'm going keep practicing "slow eating" and see how things turn out. :)

and to answer gabriel's question, i eat more than my protein requirement everday. for dvdmon, i suppose i could have a tape worm, but in that case, wouldn't i be losing a lot of weight as well? and lastly, but most importantly, i'm not pregnant ;)

[LisaS]

there are lots of behavioral tricks for slowing down - eating mindfully (noticing textures, tastes, smells), noticing chewing or counting chews, putting your fork down between each bite, cutting each bite just before you eat it (compared to say, cutting up all your meat all at once), etc.

[backpacker]

One reason I used to eat fast was because I didin't like my food getting cold. I've recently added one simple thing to my cooking repertoire - I heat up my plates in the oven to 170 degrees or so (that's my oven's lowest setting). I can barely touch them. I usually grab them with a towel or oven mit. If it's a larger meal, I may even heat them up more, like to 210 or so. You just have to be careful to not burn yourself.

I do this for every single meal. This really helps keep the food warm for much longer, and I don't feel like I have to eat it quick before it get's cold.

My wife loves it, and my guests are always impressed as well. :)

[Gaelen]

the heated plate...one of those little restaurant 'secrets' that makes the difference between the specialness of eating out and eating the same food at home. ;)

The other thing that can help...with both the keeping food warm and the eating more slowly...is to formally divide your meals into courses, and take a minutes or two to clear course one before serving course two. You'd be surprised...even if your courses are salad, protein with veggies course, fruit/cheese course, and coffee, something even this simple will add five minutes of course cleanup to every meal, and automatically slow things down.

[Mitra]

I've found that eating several small courses makes a big difference - the meal feels more satisfying, and you have can actually end up eating less. It seems to take a bit of time for my stomach to realise that it's full. When I eat slowly - eg by having small courses - I'm eating at a pace that allows my body time to signal that I'm no longer hungry.

It can be as simple as serving a bit of green salad after the main course, some fruit (half a dozen grapes, an apricot or a small satsuma) or yogurt and berries, a small piece of cheese.

Interestingly, when I stayed with an Italian family once, that's how they ate. Not a lot of food, but at least four courses. As many of the family as could make it, twice a day. Maybe that's what makes the mediterranean diet so healthy?

[arc]

there are lots of behavioral tricks for slowing down - eating mindfully (noticing textures, tastes, smells), noticing chewing or counting chews, putting your fork down between each bite, cutting each bite just before you eat it (compared to say, cutting up all your meat all at once), etc.
One thing that really helps is don't eat watching TV, reading, sitting at the computer, driving the car, etc. In other words, avoid eating while on auto-pilot.