Always Hungry?

[Grantith]

I'm going crazy because I am always hungry. Is this normal for a male, vegetarian teen? I just feel like I am constantly hungry all day long. Unless I totally binge and go crazy, I never feel full. Of course when I binge, the guilt is worse than the hunger feeling. haha. I'm also so paranoid about getting enough calories so I can get enough protein, but I don't want to gain weight. ahhh this is garbage. I never know how much is too much and how much is too little. Any ideas? Can my body ask for food when it doesn't need it? If it could torture me just for the hell of it, I really think it would. :p I think I'll keep a log of what I eat for a few days and show my doc the next time I see him to see what he thinks.

[iceflower]

It takes a lot more fruit and veggies to fill you up than meat does.
Why dont you try having heavier, protein based meals - ones using beans, tvp, chickpeas, lentils etc? Also foods high in fat are suppose to give you greater saeity (sp?).
And go for foods with a low Glycemic Index - try to avoid food high in suagr. Eat foods like oatmeal etc - it releases energy slowly and will keep you feeling full for long.

[vegbassist]

Yeah, I used to feel like that when I first went vegan, but try snacking a lot, because thats what helped me. And definitely eat a lot of food with high protein content, like what iceflower said.

[veganmuncher]

I think it's quite normal. What age are you? Teenagers are growing so you need to eat plenty.... maybe it's the growth spurt or something...

Like iceflower said eat more protein, it'll fill you up and be good for your growth etc... and plenty of fibrey, starchy foods...

[LiquidTrix]

something I've taken too is making my own peanut brittle and I eat it pretyt much constantly throughuot a day. I'm a VERY active 17 year old so my daily calorie intake is probally in the 4500 range even though I weigh 135.

[StvSpl]

i eat so muchh.... i make a bunch of shakes and juices and stuiff to try to stifle it..

[totalmuggle]

make sure to eat the suggested 7 servings of carbs a day!

[ExhumeToConsume]

i get no exercise at all (graphic designer), eat like 5 meals a day, a fair amount of junk food, and i am practically a twig. the only time i have gained weight in the last few years was when i ate taco bell 4 days a week for an entire semester. i gained 15 pounds!

the moral of the story is: eat until you are full, don't worry about gaining weight unless you gain a bunch of weight.

[Keeganisafish]

I'm always hungry, and I have been eating a lot lot lot of fruit (nitjust fruit, just much more than normal). I am about 150. I am 5'7", and I have gained wieght (then again, I didnt exercise until today) but I don't know what is wrong with me. It's weird.

[annabanana]

If you gain weight by eating healthily then your body is just reaching homeostasis which is what it's supposed to do! :)

[floridawriter87]

Depending upon what kind of vegetarian you are, you may want to eat more pasta, soy burgers, bran, oatmeal, things with fiber that actually expand once they are digested. You can even purchase Bran supplements from your department store, drug store or even grocery store and take a couple along with your meal, before or after your meal(s). Hope this helps.

[Formerbaboon]

Try and eat whole grains, rather than refined ones, because they take longer to digest, and it does not release insulin into the bloodstream, so you feel full longer. I read it in my 'Fat Free Living' book :)

[NDvegan85]

Teenage boys often feel hungry all of the time, not just vegetarians! (I hagve two younger brothers that never cease to amaze me.) Fruits, veggie, whole grains, beans and other fibrous stuff takes more energy for the body to digest too.