Ghrelin: The hunger hormone

Ghrelin is central to appetite & release of growth hormone. To stay healthy it is important to understand this hormone & its impact on the body.

Ghrelin is produced in the stomach & intestine with little bit of hormone in the pancreas & brain. It is also called hunger hormone given its vital role in controlling appetite.

Ghrelin serves many purposes but the most commonly discussed is its ability to regulate appetite causing individuals to digest more food & store more fat. This hormone has a role to play in hypothalamus, the part of the brain that controls appetite & also acts on regions of the brain that control reward processing. Ghrelin also plays a role in pituitary gland function where Ghrelin receptors trigger release of hormones. It helps in controlling release of insulin & plays an important role in improving cardiovascular health. Besides, Ghrelin also impacts your circadian rhythm, taste sensation & carbohydrate metabolism

Given that Ghrelin regulates appetite, it plays an important role in weight loss when someone diets. When someone controls consuming calories, ghrelin level increases. This causes the rebound of calories lost which happens with post-diet for most of the people. Folks who suffer from Anorexia Nervosa( discussed in our previous blog) experience high ghrelin levels which occur due to the body’s response to starvation.

Patients who have gastric bypass surgery can have lower ghrelin levels than those who lose weight naturally. This is why after gastric bypass surgery, if you follow the eating plan, it has long-term effectiveness regarding weight loss.

What causes Ghrelin to rise?

Ghrelin level typically rises before your meal when you are hungry & goes down after your stomach is full. Ghrelin level is low in people suffering from obesity. Regardless of whatever body fat you have, Ghrelin level increases & makes you feel hungry when you start the diet. During a diet, your appetite increases & level of “ Leptin” goes down. Your metabolic rate also goes down considerably when you restrict calories for a long period of time. Your hormones & metabolism then try to regain all the weight you lost. This is the reason we never recommend calorie deficit for folks who want to lose weight.

How to lower Ghrelin?

Ghrelin hormone cannot be controlled using diet or supplements. Some of the ways through which you can maintain healthy level of Ghrelin include:

1. Avoid extreme weights: Both obesity & anorexia impacts Ghrelin levels. Therefore you should avoid both overeating & situation of starvation.
2. Poor sleep levels: Inadequate sleep level increases your Ghrelin & has been linked to hunger & weight gain. We have discussed this in our earlier blog on circadian rhythm.
3. High Muscle mass: High muscle mass &/or fat free mass is associated with low Ghrelin levels. It essentially means 1 hour exercise should be part of your daily routine.
4. Eat more protein: Consuming protein rich diet makes you feel full & reduce hunger which reduced Ghrelin levels.
5. Avoid unstable weight: Having a stable weight maintains healthy Ghrelin level & does not disrupt your metabolism.
6. Calorie cycling: Following cycling diet( for example carb cycling) reduces your hunger hormones & increases Leptin levels.

PS: Originally published on www.thesushantkumar.com