Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsNot Enough ProteinNot Sleeping EnoughNot Drinking Enough WaterStressToo Many Refined CarbsLow-Fat DietLack of FiberDistracted EatingFast EatingExercise RoutineAlcohol ConsumptionDrinking CaloriesMedicationRelated Medical ConditionsWhen to Find a Healthcare Provider
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Not Enough Protein
Not Sleeping Enough
Not Drinking Enough Water
Stress
Too Many Refined Carbs
Low-Fat Diet
Lack of Fiber
Distracted Eating
Fast Eating
Exercise Routine
Alcohol Consumption
Drinking Calories
Medication
Related Medical Conditions
When to Find a Healthcare Provider
Are you always hungry and wondering why?Hungeris the natural way your body lets you know it needs more food. If you’re always hungry, it could signal a dietary deficiency, stress, too little sleep, or hormone imbalances.
The answer could be any of 14 reasons—some minor, some serious, some easily remedied, and others more difficult to fix. This article details those reasons, plus signs of extreme hunger and when you need to talk to a healthcare provider.
SolStock / Getty Images
You’re Not Eating Enough Protein
Proteinis important for your body to produce energy. When you don’t get enough (which is very common), it can affect your hunger levels.
You have proteins in every part of your body. They’re crucial for proper healing and growth plus many aspects of functionality. Commonsymptoms of a protein deficiencyare:
Protein also slows down your digestion, which makes you feel full for longer.
While protein needs vary depending on your age, sex, activity levels, and overall healthiness, the average adult should eat about 50 grams (g) of protein a day.
Your healthcare provider can diagnose low protein levels with a blood test.
You’re Not Sleeping Enough
Your constant hunger could be the result of too little sleep. When you don’t sleep enough, your body isn’t able to regulate the balance of two hormones that determine your appetite. These hormones are:
Poor sleep also changes how your body uses the hormoneinsulin, which controls your blood sugar levels. In addition to making you want to eat, this increases your risk of developingdiabetes.
Overeating because of hormone imbalances can lead to unwanted weight gain andobesity, which also boosts your diabetes risk.
Experts recommend between 7 and 9 hours of sleep per night for adults. Less than 7 hours is considered harmful to your health.
If you’re not sleeping enough, you may want to make lifestyle changes to allow more time for sleep, improve yoursleep hygiene, or ask your healthcare provider about the possibility of asleep disorder.
Leptin, Ghrelin, and Your Appetite
You’re Not Drinking Enough Water
You might feel hungry because you need to up your water intake. Experts say people can mistake thirst for hunger.
Additionally, some symptoms ofdehydrationare similar to hunger symptoms, including:
If you’re feeling especially hungry, try drinking a glass of water and see if you feel satisfied. The common belief is that you should drink about eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily. Your total fluid needs are higher than that:
However, some of this fluid comes from food and other beverages. Along with the symptoms listed above,dark-colored urineindicates that you need more liquids.
You’re Stressed Out
High-stress levels, especiallychronic stress, can make you want to eat more. Once again, this is a hormone issue—at least in part.
Cortisolis the body’s primary stress hormone. The more stressed you feel, the higher your cortisol levels. An effect of cortisol is increased hunger, food consumption, and weight gain.
On top of that, many people turn to emotional eating when they’re stressed. While you may crave food and want to eat, this isn’t because of actual hunger cues from your body.
To combat stress, you may want to:
If you know you tend to overeat when stress creeps up, try to keep healthier options on hand, watch your portion sizes, and try to be more mindful of what and how much you’re eating instead of passively eating while, say, watching a movie.
Is “Hangry” a Real Thing?
You’re Eating Too Many Refined Carbs
Refined carbs come from highly processed foods. Some major sources of refined carbs are:
Most of these foods are easy to reach for when you’re hungry between meals. A big problem with them is that thedietary fiberhas been removed. Fiber helps you feel full and takes a long time to digest.
Meanwhile, refined carbs move through your system much faster—leaving you hungry again sooner. They also increase yourblood sugar levels. And when those levels drop, it’s a sign to your body to send outhunger signals.
These contain fiber, which will tamp down those hunger cues.
Your Diet Is Low in Fat
This one might seem counterintuitive—you’ve likely heard you shouldn’t eat too much fat. However, part of the problem is that fats make you feel full, so cutting them out lessens that feeling. Those removed fats are often replaced with refined carbohydrates, which digest quickly, raise insulin levels, and make you hungry.
Some experts now say, instead of trying to cut out fat, it’s better to focus on eating whole, natural foods. That includes the fat that’s naturally in those foods.
Your Diet Lacks Fiber
Whensoluble dietary fibermixes with water, it forms a gel-like substance that slows digestion. Eating a diet low in soluble fiber means faster digestion and a quicker return to a growling stomach.
Experts recommend U.S. adults eat between 25 and 30 grams of fiber a day fromfood—not supplements. However, the average American only takes in about 15 grams per day.
Along with increased hunger, symptoms of low fiber intake include:
To increase fiber in your diet, eat more whole foods such as:
Many experts recommend dietary fiber (i.e., fiber that comes from food intake) over fiber supplements.
High-Fiber Foods
You Eat While Distracted
Eating while distracted makes it easy to reach for another handful of popcorn or another cookie. Before long, you realize you’ve eaten far more than you should have.
What does this have to do with feeling hungry all the time? Distracted eating is often rapid eating. Because there’s a delay of about 20 minutes between when your stomach is full and when satiety signals reach your brain, you’ll still feel hungry after eating more.
It also has to do with memory. When you’re distracted, you don’t form memories of having eaten. That can lead to reaching for food sooner simply because it seems like it’s been a long time since you ate. As with stress eating, mindful eating can eliminate the problems associated with distraction.
You Eat Too Fast
Eating too fast isn’t just a problem when you’re distracted. It might happen because you’re in a hurry or just out of habit. The result is the same: your stomach is full, but your brain doesn’t know it, so you keep eating well past when you should’ve stopped. Once again, mindful eating is key.
You Exercise a Lot
Exercise burns calories (food energy) and makes you hungrier. It’s how your body tells you to replenish what you just used. That’s not true of all exercise, though. Research suggests moderate exercise tends tosuppress hungerfor a while afterward. However, high-intensity workouts appear to lead to more hunger and food intake.
If you’re trying to control your weight, this increased hunger may work against you. You may want to try less intense workouts or increasing foods that are high in:
Healthy Fats and Adding Them to Your Diet
You’re Drinking Too Much Alcohol
There’s a reason bars often put out munchies like peanuts and pretzels. Alcohol is an appetite stimulant. According to research, though, alcohol only makes you feel hungrier after you start eating. It also appears to reduce how satisfied you feel after eating. That may be because alcohol lowers the release of leptin (your hunger-inhibition hormone).
However, other research suggests it lowers ghrelin, the hunger hormone. More research is needed to fully understand the effects. Alcohol may increase hunger in another way, as well. It’s high in calories but doesn’t make you feel full like food does, so you eat to feel and end up with an increased calorie intake.
You Drink Your Calories
Alcohol isn’t the only high-calorie drink that can leave you feeling hungry. Sugary sodas, lattes, mochas, sweetened iced teas, and fruit juice also provide a lot of calories without making you feel satiated.
Research shows people don’t tend to eat less after drinking a lot of calories because those liquids don’t contain the things that make you feel full, like dietary fiber and protein.
You Take Certain Medications
Some medications are appetite stimulants, so taking them can make you feel hungry more often.Sometimes, increased appetite is the goal. Other times, it may be an unwanted side effect.
Drugs used as appetite stimulants (among other uses) include:
Other drugs may have this effect as well. If you notice unwanted increased hunger after starting a new medication, ask your healthcare provider about it.
You May Have a Medical Condition
Certain medical conditions can increase your hunger levels. This is calledpolyphagiaor hyperphagia. Conditions that cause it include:
What Your Pregnancy Cravings Mean
Many causes of increased appetite are not a cause for medical treatment. However, because excessive hunger can be a symptom of an undiagnosed condition, you should contact your healthcare provider if:
A quick diagnosis can improve the outcomes of many medical conditions.
Never Hungry? Causes and What to Do
Summary
Increased hunger can come from dietary inadequacies, stress, lifestyle issues and habits, and medical conditions. Many of them are simple to remedy, while others could require medical treatment.
It’s important to note any odd changes in your appetite, weight, and how you feel. Talk to a healthcare provider if you’re worried about these changes.
26 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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