Understand how to identify the indications and signs your body showcases when you aren’t consuming sufficient food.
Factors such as stress, hectic schedules, sickness, grief, and the chaos of daily life can impact us significantly. More specifically, these influences can affect our hunger cues and appetite regulation. This often results in insufficient food intake. Moreover, many individuals aiming for weight reduction may unintentionally limit their food consumption to achieve their objectives.
No matter the reason, failing to provide your body with adequate nutrition can lead to issues that disturb your metabolic processes and hormonal balance. Both of these problems may take time to recognize if you’ve been persistently undernourishing yourself.
Let’s explore the clear signs that your body may be lacking essential proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, alongside methods to elevate your food consumption through a well-rounded diet.
If you’ve been feeling utterly drained for weeks, regardless of your sleep duration or quality, it may be necessary to reassess your dietary habits. When we consistently eat too little, our bodies struggle to fuel themselves properly, which may lead to feelings of lethargy and sluggishness.
This is especially common with low carbohydrate diets. Since starchy carbohydrates serve as a primary source of quick energy, it’s understandable that limiting them can result in subpar energy levels.
Examine your usual intake when it comes to both quantity and diversity. Are your meals balanced with the Foundational Five elements? Are you incorporating starchy carbohydrates? Are you eating when you feel hungry and paying attention to your body’s signals? Take a moment to reflect and see if you can implement some changes.
Dizziness is often one of the initial physical indicators that you might not be consuming enough. Inadequate food intake can result in plummeting blood sugar levels, leaving you feeling dizzy or faint. If you frequently experience lightheadedness and can’t pinpoint the cause, consider evaluating your food consumption.
For a quick energy boost, try snacking on something that includes carbohydrates and protein, such as a banana with almond butter, a handful of berries and nuts, or veggie sticks paired with hummus. This blend of carbs and protein aids in raising and stabilizing blood sugar levels to enhance your energy.
However, if dizziness continues after making dietary and lifestyle changes, consult with your doctor to exclude any potential health issues.
Might you experience moments of forgetfulness like misplacing your keys? That happens to everyone, but frequent brain fog could signify that you need to reassess your nutritional intake (i.e. consider eating more)! While brain fog could indicate several health issues, it is frequently a prominent symptom of inadequate daily food consumption.
Pushing back lunch or altering your typical meal schedule for meetings or calls can postpone the energy your body requires to function optimally. So when that 3 p.m. slump hits and you realize you’ve skipped lunch, let that serve as a reminder to visit the kitchen or grab a bite.
It’s advisable to focus on whole foods as much as possible. Opt for a filling salad packed with fresh vegetables, possibly adding sweet potatoes, avocado, grilled chicken, or your choice of protein, along with a flavorful dressing. Foods abundant in B-vitamins, omega-3s, folate, and antioxidants can enhance cognitive function and prevent declines in mental capability (1). Farewell to brain fog.
This might surprise you, but when you’re not eating adequately or securing enough nutrients, your body prioritizes delivery of nutrients to essential organs like the brain, heart, and lungs over non-essential areas like hair, skin, and nails. The health of your hair, skin, and nails strongly correlates with your diet and the vitamins and minerals absorbed by your body.
It’s typical to shed 50-100 hair strands daily. If you notice more hair loss than usual and your nails appear weaker, you might want to concentrate on nurturing your hair and nails from within.
Begin by consuming foods that facilitate keratin production, the protein crucial for hair and nail strength. Spinach, beans, oatmeal, salmon, eggs, and berries are all superb sources of nutrients beneficial for hair and nails. Nutrients such as protein, biotin, iron, vitamin B12, and omega-3 fatty acids are particularly vital for preserving the thickness, shine, and growth of your hair.
Encountering “hanger” is a legitimate emotion! If you start your hectic day without breakfast, your blood sugar and mood may plummet. Studies have indicated that low glucose levels could lead to irritability and aggressive behavior (2). Hence, when you skip meals, irritability may become an early noticeable consequence of insufficient food intake.
The optimal way to combat hanger is by eating consistently scheduled meals and healthy snacks. Maintaining regular meal times helps stabilize your blood sugar, allowing you to maintain a positive mood and good energy levels. When you notice the first signs of hunger rising, don’t ignore it! Respond appropriately by eating a meal or snack, depending on how hungry you feel, to remain your best self instead of succumbing to irritability.
Do you often feel chilly, even when it’s warm? Consuming an adequate amount of food is essential to maintain your body temperature while performing other physiological functions.
When intake is inadequate, thermogenesis—which helps your body create heat—may become inefficient. Some studies suggest that people on restrictive diets tend to have lower body temperatures compared to those who aren’t (3).
Women who are underweight or have low body fat may also develop “downy” hair (lanugo) as their bodies adjust to heat loss. If body fat is lacking, lanugo can grow to assist in heat retention. This condition is common in individuals with anorexia nervosa or extremely low body weight.
Ensuring you eat an adequate amount of food can actually aid in managing your hydration levels. Many electrolytes acquired through food influence thirst, including sodium, potassium, and magnesium. If you remain thirsty even after drinking a glass of water, that may signal you aren’t consuming sufficient calories.
Your body can sometimes confuse thirst with hunger, leading you away from your water bottle. Be sure to reach for hydrating drinks such as caffeine-free teas, sparkling unsweetened seltzers, and good old water.
Amenorrhea is the medical term describing absent menstrual periods. Women may experience missed periods for various reasons, including pregnancy, dietary changes, and stress levels. Additionally, certain medications, including contraceptives, can impact the menstrual cycle. Specific health conditions like hypothyroidism and polycystic ovarian syndrome can also disrupt hormone levels and result in period irregularities.
Amenorrhea may occur if you aren’t consuming enough food and have low body fat or are underweight (approximately 10% below “normal” weight, which varies among individuals). Being underweight can halt ovulation and induce hormonal changes, leading to missed periods, particularly among women with disordered eating patterns or those who are competitive athletes. In some instances, these women’s bodies cannot secure the nutrients required for standard bodily functions.
The female athlete triad involves a cycle of low energy intake, amenorrhea, and reduced bone density. It’s most frequently seen in athletes striving to maintain a certain “leanness” for specific activities like figure skating, ballet, gymnastics, and others.
The main takeaway from this article is to stay mindful and attuned to your body’s signals indicating that something might not be right. Use these 8 signs and symptoms to assess your own well-being and determine if you need to increase your energy intake.
Then discover your balanced eating archetype!
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