A is for Appetite Hormones

Why You’re Not Actually Hungry (and What to Do About It)

Let’s begin at the beginning, literally, with the letter A, and one of the most misunderstood forces behind insulin resistance: your appetite.

If you’ve ever said “I’m starving” an hour after lunch... If you’ve ever opened the fridge just to stare at it... If you’ve ever polished off a sleeve of crackers you didn’t even like...

This one's for you.

Because your hunger might not be coming from your stomach. It might be coming from your hormones.

Your Hunger Isn’t Random, It’s Scripted

Appetite isn’t a moral failure, a lack of willpower, or a personality flaw. It’s a system: an elegant, hormonal push-and-pull that tells your body when to eat, when to stop, and what to crave.

Let’s meet the cast.

1. Ghrelin: The Grumbler

Ghrelin is your hunger-starter. Made in your stomach, it rises when your belly is empty and says, “Hey! Let’s eat something, preferably fast, preferably carby.”

You can think of ghrelin like the kid in the back seat on a long road trip asking, “Are we there yet?” every five minutes. And if you feed it mostly processed foods or skip meals, it gets louder, more annoying, and harder to ignore.

Fun fact: Ghrelin doesn’t just respond to food. It’s influenced by sleep, stress, and habit cues. It’s a pattern-spotter. Eat every night at 9pm? It’ll show up like clockwork—even if you just had dinner.

2. Leptin: The Fullness Whisperer

Leptin is made by your fat cells and tells your brain, “We’re good. We’ve got fuel in the tank. You can stop now.”

But here’s the twist: in insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, leptin’s voice gets muffled. Your brain stops listening. It’s like someone yelling “We’re full!” from a soundproof room.

This is called leptin resistance, and it creates a frustrating cycle: the more fat your body stores, the more leptin it makes… but the less your brain responds. So you keep eating, not out of gluttony, but because the off-switch is broken.

3. Insulin: The Gatekeeper

We usually think of insulin as the blood sugar hormone, and it is. But insulin also has a key role in appetite: it tells your body when you’re well-fed and signals your brain to curb cravings.

In a healthy system, insulin spikes after a meal, says “We’re good,” and gently nudges you away from the cookie jar.

But in insulin resistance, your cells stop responding. So your pancreas makes more. And more. And more. High insulin leads to more hunger, more fat storage, more inflammation… and less satiety.

That’s why insulin resistance isn’t just about blood sugar—it’s about hunger signals that don’t make sense anymore.

So What Does This Have to Do with Fiber?

Everything.

Fiber is like a hormone therapist for your appetite system. It doesn’t just “bulk up your stool” like the boring brochures say. It plays a starring role in regulating hunger, hormones, and healing metabolism.

Here’s how:

• Fiber slows digestion. This keeps ghrelin quieter, longer, so you’re not hungry again 90 minutes later.
• Fiber balances blood sugar. Slower glucose rise = lower insulin spike = less fat storage = clearer appetite signals.
• Fiber feeds your gut microbiome. Those microbes help produce short-chain fatty acids, which improve insulin sensitivity and reduce inflammation, both major players in leptin and insulin resistance.

In short, fiber is the unsung hero of appetite repair.

Micro Habit: Begin Every Meal With Fiber

Why it works: Starting your meal with fiber-rich foods like vegetables, legumes, or chia seeds activates stretch receptors in your stomach, blunts the glucose spike from what comes next, and tells your hormones, “Hey, something good is happening.”

It gives your body time to catch up to your brain. It calms ghrelin before it panics. It sets the stage for better blood sugar and less post-meal hunger.

Try this:

• Eat a small side of broccoli or cucumber before dinner.
• Add a tablespoon of flax or chia to your morning smoothie or oats.
• Start lunch with a cup of veggie soup or a few slices of red pepper.

Even a handful of fiber-rich veggies first can make a difference.

Let’s Rewind This Narrative

You’re not weak. You’re not broken. You’re not “addicted to food.”

You’ve just been stuck in a system where your hormones are shouting over each other, and your body’s trying to make sense of the noise.

The solution isn’t shame. It’s clarity. And the first step? Help your appetite hormones speak clearly again.

Start with fiber. Start with “A.” Because when your body knows what to say, you’ll finally know when you’re truly hungry—and when you’re not.

You’re just one healing habit away.

There are millions of people walking around in the same fog—tired, hungry, confused—and blaming themselves for it. You never know who needs this today.

Let’s help each other heal. One habit. One post. One share at a time.