Losing weight is a difficult task, but maintaining weight afterwards is even more difficult.
Research shows that the number of dieters who have gained weight again within 1 year accounts for a very large proportion .
The weight gain again is due in part to the appetite of the body and weight-regulating hormones are trying to maintain and even regain the initial amount of fat
"Hunger hormones" ghrelin plays an important role because it signals the brain when to eat .
The amount of this substance increases during the diet, making the hunger reduction decrease, which makes it difficult to lose weight .
Here's what you need to know about this hormone and how to control it.
What is ghrelin?
Ghrelin is a hormone produced in the intestine. It is often called a hungry hormone, and is sometimes called lenomorelin.
This substance passes through the blood to the brain, where it signals to the brain to create a feeling of hunger and to ask for food.
Ghrelin's main function is to increase appetite. It makes you eat more, absorb more calories and storing more fat .
The chart below shows the increase in weight of mice injected with this hormone . 
In addition, ghrelin also affects the sleep-wake cycle, reward-seeking behavior, taste and carbohydrate metabolism .
This hormone is produced in the stomach and secreted when the stomach is empty. It enters the bloodstream and then affects the hypothalamus (which regulates hormones and appetite) that is part of the brain .
The higher the ghrelin level, the more hungry you feel. Conversely, the lower the level, the more you feel full and eat less calories.
So if you want weight loss You may want to reduce ghrelin levels.
Ghrelin can be considered a terrible dietary hormone. However, in the past, this substance played a role in maintaining life by helping people maintain body fat.
Today, if you eat less or try weight gain High levels of ghrelin can help you consume more food and calories every day.
Conclude: Ghrelin is a signaling hormone to the brain that makes you feel hungry. It plays an important role in regulating the amount of calories and fat in the body.
What makes ghrelin increase?
Ghrelin levels often rise before meals, when the stomach is empty and will decrease as soon as you are full .
Many people think that obese people have higher levels of ghrelin, but they may actually be more sensitive to hormonal effects only. In fact, some studies show that the obesity level of obese people is actually lower than those with a toned body .
Other studies show that obese people may have an overactive ghrelin receptor named causing the calorie intake to increase in the body .
However, regardless of the amount of fat in your body, ghrelin levels will increase when starting a diet and starving you. This is the body's natural reaction to the lack of food intake.
During the diet, hunger will increase and the "full hormone" leptin will drop. Metabolic rate also tends reduction Significant, especially when you limit calorie intake for a long time .
For these reasons, these adaptations can make weight loss and weight maintenance much more difficult.
The hormone and metabolism in the body will be adjusted to try to regain the weight you have reduced.
Conclude: The level of ghrelin can increase during the diet, increasing hunger and making weight loss more difficult.
How ghrelin levels change during a diet
On the first day of dieting, ghrelin levels will begin to increase. This change will continue for weeks.
A human study showed that ghrelin increased by 24% in a 6-month diet .
In another study of a 3-month weight-loss diet, researchers found the hormone levels doubled from 770 to 1,322 pmol. / liter .
In a six-month diet with an impressive fat loss effect due to a very strict diet restriction, ghrelin levels increased by 40% .
These cases show that the longer the diet, the more fat and muscle the body reduces, the more ghrelin the more.
This makes you even more hungry, so it will be very difficult for you to maintain a new weight.
Conclude: Ghrelin levels increased significantly during dieting. The longer diet, ghrelin gets higher.
How to lower ghrelin levels and reduce hunger
Ghrelin seems to be a hormone that cannot be controlled directly by drugs, diet or dietary supplements.
However, there are several ways you can take to control ghrelin at a stable level:
- Not to weigh at extreme levels: Both obesity and loss of appetite alter ghrelin levels
- Focus on sleep: Lack of sleep can increase ghrelin, which can lead to increased hunger and weight gain .
- Increase muscle mass: Increased muscle mass is associated with a decrease in ghrelin levels .
- Eat more protein: High-protein diets increase satiety and reduce hunger. Reducing ghrelin levels is one of the reasons behind this effect .
- Maintain a stable weight: Weight change mutations, also known as yo-yo effects, interrupt the main hormones including ghrelin .
- Calorie intake cyclically: Stages eat more calories Can reduce hunger hormones and increase leptin. One study found that consuming more than 29-45% of calories in 2 weeks reduced ghrelin levels to 18% .
Conclude: Maintaining a stable weight, avoiding long-term diets, eating more protein and sleeping more can help maintain ghrelin at the best level.
Things to remember
Ghrelin is a very important hungry hormone.
It plays an essential role in appetite, hunger, as well as food intake. Therefore, this hormone can greatly affect weight loss and weight maintenance.
With an interesting and sustainable diet plan, you can avoid the yo-yo effect that causes great fluctuations in weight and adversely affect hormones in the body.
