Loss of appetite happens when you don't want to eat, and it can be a symptom of physical or mental illnesses, also, if loss of appetite lasts for several days it can lead to malnutrition or unhealthy weight loss, so today we'll tell you ways to help increase appetite.
First way: Eat small meals often
Eating three big meals might seem hard when you don’t have a healthy appetite, sothere’s a way to help you eat more by splitting your meals into 6 small ones, and you can gradually add more calories to those meals, for example if you eat a tuna sandwich, you can add some veggies with a bit of cheese.
The second way: Eat nutritious foods
Girls who have poor appetite tend to eat empty calories like sweets, fried potato chips, ice cream, and ready-made baked goods. That's a bad idea and won't give your body the vitamins and nutrients it needs. You should focus on protein, healthy fats, and vegetables For example, instead of ice cream, you can eat yogurt with some fruits like berries, strawberries, apples, or bananas.
The third way: Add more calories
Another way to increase your appetite and make sure you eat enough food during the day is to add more calories to the meals you already eat, and you do this by cooking with ingredients that have high calories like butter, full-fat milk, nut butter, and olive oil. For example:
- Add 45 calories: when cooking eggs with butter.
- Add 80 calories: cook oatmeal with whole milk instead of water.
- Add 80 calories: put some olive oil and avocado in your green salad.
- Add 100 calories: spread peanut butter on apple slices.
Simple additions add more calories and many vitamins that help improve your overall health.
Method four: make mealtime enjoyable
Cooking helps stimulate eating and also Eating food with friends and family Helps you improve your mood while eating. Also, try watching TV while having your meal. All these tricks help you add more food into your body.
Fifth way: trick your brain with different plates
If you suffer from loss of appetite when you see plates full of lots of food, it will cause you stress and anxiety, eat meals on big plates where your eyes see the portions as small, so you eat larger amounts of food.
Sixth way: set fixed times for eating
Don't rely on your appetite. Instead, set meal times that suit you and try to stick to eating at those times. You can set a phone alarm. This will train your appetite after a while to feel hungry at those times.
Seventh way: don't skip breakfast
Eating breakfast daily helps you in several ways. First, it increases your appetite for the rest of the day, After a while, it becomes a habit as soon as you wake up from sleep, you will eat. Breakfast also helps raise your body temperature which makes you feel hungrier.
Eighth method: Reduce fiber intake
Diets that include a large amount of fiber help you feel full all the time, They also slow down digestion, so they don’t help you eat more food. So try to cut down on fiber in your meals.
Ninth method: Consume more calories
Drinking lots of fluids that have many calories, like sahlab, cocoa, and smoothies rich in vitamins and nutrients, this helps you increase the calories you take in, and you can add healthy fat sources like nuts and avocado. You can also add protein sources like yogurt.
Tenth method: Eat light healthy meals
You can carry light healthy meals while hiking or out of the house to make up for not eating big meals then. Light meals don’t make you feel full for long. Light foods like:
- bananas, apples, or orange slices.
- Granola bars.
- Greek yogurt
- Nut butter with healthy crackers.
- Popcorn.
Method eleven: Eat plenty of your favorite foods.
If there are foods you want and like, try eating them when you don't have an appetite,this will increase the food you take in gradually, and try to cook your favorite foods like burgers and pizza with healthy ingredients.
Method twelve: Use herbs and spices.
Some foods slow digestion, cause bloating, and reduce appetite, There are some spices and herbs that reduce those symptoms like fennel, mint, and pepper black pepper and coriander, And when those symptoms disappear, you'll feel your appetite open up and get hungrier. These herbs also help the digestive enzymes work better. Adding herbs and spices also helps you eat more food.
The 13th way: exercise more
Your body burns a lot of calories during exercise, and this makes your appetite increase to replace the calories that were burned, so many girls feel very hungry after working out. This will lead to overall better health and also increases muscle mass in the body.
The 14th method: Reduce drinks with meals
Drinking fluids before or during meals reduces the amount of food you take in, and this method helps you lose weight, which is the opposite of what we wantTry not to drink water at least half an hour before meals, you'll notice your appetite improves.
The 15th method: Some supplements might help you
There are many nutritional supplements that help improve your appetite, because lack of some important minerals and vitamins reduces appetite like:
- Zinc: A zinc deficiency can cause loss of appetite and taste disturbances, leading to decreased desire to eat.
- Thiamine: Lack of this vitamin causes high energy use during rest and also loss of appetite.
- Fish oil: This vitamin increases appetite and reduces the feeling of fullness.
- Echinacea: This herb helps boost the immune system and fight many diseases. It also can help increase appetite sometimes.
Method sixteen: Keep a food journal
Writing down what you eat helps you Make sure you get your required calories, and write down the foods you like, and it will know the remaining calories for you.
