Not Hungry in the Morning? Your Body May Be to Blame.

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 Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. At least that is what Mom always said, but is it true?

Think about the term “breakfast”, it literally means breaking the fast. In the morning, your body has not had any food since dinner or snack the night before. As it stands, this is your body’s first fuel of the day, so then why might you not be hungry?

1. You ate a large dinner, or a late-night snack. If your body is used to a fast of at least 10-12 hours (think 7 pm dinner, and breakfast at 7 am), you may not be hungry if your last meal was a few hours later than normal. If you put down a steak or a dish with a higher fat content, it takes longer for your body to process and break this down.

2. Hormone fluctuations may impact your hunger levels. Levels of adrenaline, gherlin, and leptin will fluctuate overnight and in the morning. This can leave you feeling less hungry when you wake in the morning. Adrenaline is part of your “fight or flight” response, and is elevated in the morning which reduces hunger. Ghrelin is a hormone that tells you to eat, and tends to be lower in the morning. Leptin is the hormone that tells you you are full, and levels tend to be higher in the morning.

3. If you have feelings of anxiety, you may feel less hungry in the morning. Besides affecting your sleep, anxiety can elevate cortisol (part of that "fight or flight" reaction; aka, your stress hormone), which will suppress your desire to eat.

4. Certain medications can suppress your hunger. Some specifics are diuretics or antibiotics.  Alternatively, some medications may make you feel nauseous, indirectly affecting your desire to eat.

5. You have thyroid issues. The thyroid hormone plays a role in metabolism. Individuals with hypothyroid disorders may experience lower hunger in the morning.  

6. You may be pregnant!  Don't forget that nausea or low appetite can come along with first trimester pregnancy symptoms.  If you are suddenly not hungry, be sure you are not expecting!!

How to Improve morning appetite

Once you have ruled out any serious cause for low morning appetite, you can try a few tricks to increase it.

1. Try not to eat after 7 pm. This will help your body to have enough time to properly digest your dinner or snack, and be ready to go first thing in the morning.

2. Opt for a lighter dinner. Think more veggies. If 75% of your plate is non starchy veggies, and the remainder is protein with a tablespoon of fat, your body will not have a “heavy” meal to digest overnight.

3. Try to regulate your cortisol levels by setting your circadian rhythm. Cortisol should naturally peak around the same time as the sun rises. If you can expose your eyes to bright morning light each day, it will help to set your cortisol and melatonin levels.

4. Reduce anxiety with mediation or breath work. The ability to calm the mind by using a 5 minute mediation, or 5 minutes of focused breathing can work wonders to settle anxiety. Reducing your anxiety can potentially help increase your appetite.

5. If you are taking prescription medications that you feel may be contributing to a decreased appetite in the morning, discuss this with your prescribing physician. You may want to ask if it’s possible to take the medication at a different time of day, or change to an alternate medication that may not affect your appetite.  Never stop taking a prescribed medication before speaking with your health care professional first.

So what should I eat in the morning?

As for what to eat in the morning, make your focus protein. If you can aim for 20-30 grams of protein in combination with complex carbs and healthy fats, you’ll kick start your digestive system for the day, and start to reset your morning appetite. I find that many of my clients do very well with a protein shake in the morning, filled with a handful of leafy greens, a tablespoon of healthy fats (like chia seeds, MCT oil, or nut butter), and some fiber to round it out. This is a fast, satisfying, and well balanced meal to keep you fueled until lunch.

Interested to learn more about how to eat to best fuel your body?  Check out my program, Gut Healthy & Happy, which focuses on food fundamentals to make eating to fuel your body easy and fun!  Or feel free to contact me directly to chat.