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Nutrition experts often tout the benefits of checking in with your hunger, listening to it, and eating accordingly. But sometimes you do need to eat when you’re not hungry, says Vandana Sheth, a registered dietitian nutritionist based in Los Angeles.
One example might be if your schedule limits when you have time to eat, she explains. “If your schedule dictates meal times, then eating when you’re not biologically hungry can be a form of ‘practical hunger.’ This is a proactive approach to self-care,” says Sheth. Eating when you have the chance can prevent you from getting too hungry and then overeating later.
On the other hand, it’s also okay to delay eating if you follow your hunger and fullness cues and can realistically shift your eating time, adds Alyssa Smolen, a registered dietitian nutritionist based in Essex County, New Jersey. But only skip if you genuinely don’t feel hungry and eating would make you nauseous, sick, or bloated, she says. In addition, get curious about your mindset or reasoning. Don’t decide to completely skip a meal to save calories.
To figure all of this out — and feed your body well — read on to learn about your hunger cues, what they mean, and how to decide whether you should eat or not. The answer to the question “Should I eat when I’m not hungry?” isn’t clear-cut, but you can discover the answer for yourself. Here’s what you need to know.
How Does My Body Create Hunger Cues?
Hunger is a feeling of discomfort or weakness caused by a lack of food coupled with the desire to eat. Some may notice their stomach growling, while others begin to experience lightheadedness.
Several parts of the body help regulate hunger: the hypothalamus, which is located in the brain, in addition to blood sugar levels, the food in your stomach and intestines, and hormones like ghrelin and leptin, per research.
As described by the Cleveland Clinic, the hormone ghrelin, which is located in the stomach, signals to the brain that you need food and increases appetite. Meanwhile, leptin does the opposite: Located in fat cells, it signals to the brain that you are satiated, which decreases appetite.
How Often Should I Feel Hungry?
Experts at the Cleveland Clinic note that hunger starts to set in two hours after your last meal. However, cues will vary day-to-day based on your food intake, stress, and activity level, among other factors.
What’s important is that you pay attention to your body’s needs. To reconnect with your hunger and fullness cues, the hunger-satiety scale (also known as the hunger-fullness scale) can help. Various institutions, from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine to the University of California at Berkeley to Denver Health, promote versions of this concept. Here’s one from Lose It!:
Ideally, based on the version above, you want to eat when you’re at a 3 (hungry) to 4 (slightly hungry) and stop when you’re at a 7 (satisfied). Eating within this range most often allows you to make more rational and intentional food choices. Of course, sometimes you may not be able to eat within this window, and that’s okay.
Keep this scale handy and use it to rank your typical hunger at meals. Then make adjustments as desired.
Can I Skip a Meal if I’m Not Hungry?
Yes, you can skip a meal if you don’t feel physically hungry. But if you skip the same meal often, look at your eating behaviors to find out why.
For example, if you skip breakfast only to feel sluggish mid-morning or hungrier as the day goes on, you may benefit from eating a balanced breakfast. Research finds that eating a high-protein breakfast may improve the sensation of fullness and reduce hunger in the hours after the meal compared to a low-protein one.
Also, make sure to take a break from work to eat. While life can be busy, if you always rush out the door in the morning or work through lunch, your body might get used to this pattern and stop signaling hunger. Instead, take a few minutes to pause, check in with yourself, and ask, “Am I hungry?” advises Smolen. You can look for sneakier signs of hunger that you may not recognize, such as a headache, fatigue, or being easily distracted, she says. If you struggle with this, you can also use the Notes feature in the Lose It! app to log when you feel hungry and full. This will help you better tune into your body’s cues.
Finally, remember that your body receives nourishment from vital nutrients and antioxidants in your diet. In general, dietitians agree that no supplement can make up for chronically skipping meals.
What if I’m on a Weight Loss Medication That Suppresses My Appetite?
If you have a low appetite because you’re taking a weight loss medication, you may have to recalibrate your relationship with hunger to get the calories and nutrients you need to stay healthy. Smolen advises consuming smaller meals throughout the day, so plan to eat about five or six meals. If you habitually forget when and if you ate (because of a lack of hunger), log your mealtimes in the Lose It! app to track how frequently you eat. This can prompt you to adjust your diet, depending on what you find.
Eating smaller, more frequent, and low-fat meals can also help decrease common side effects, such as nausea, which can be exacerbated by waiting too long to eat or skipping meals, Smolen says. Of course, guidance from a registered dietitian while you’re on the medication can help you create a meal plan that meets your needs.
