Why do some fruits and vegetables make me feel hungrier?

June 29, 2010 7:41 AM

Why do some fruits and vegetables make me feel hungrier?

Often, I'll eat something like a banana or half of an avocado when I'm a bit hungry. The problem is that often these make me feel more hungry very quickly. My first thought is that my body senses food and says "MEALTIME!" but this doesn't happen with all foods (rarely with cereals, apples, or other snack foods I eat). The increased hunger is often accompanied by a slight uneasiness that goes away within 10 minutes or so. Why are these delicious things making me more hungry?

posted by pollex to Food & Drink (8 answers total)

I think you're on the right track. The avg banana has about 200 calories most of which are carbohydrates and from sugar. Having half a banana, or 100 calories, is a rush of sucrose into your system which will jumpstart your metabolism which in turn will likely send signals to your stomach that it wants more substantial nutrition.
posted by Hurst at 7:50 AM on June 29, 2010

200 calories in a banana? According to calorieking.com, it's more like 100.
posted by Evangeline at 7:53 AM on June 29, 2010

Yeah, a medium banana is about 100 calories, but it's basically simple sugars and only a bit of fiber, which will indeed make you hungry. I'm quite surprised an avocado would have a similar effect, as it's more caloric, has 3 times the fiber and protein, and none of the sugar.
posted by zoomorphic at 7:59 AM on June 29, 2010

For me it's the opposite - apple can make me hungry but not banana or avocado.
posted by rainy at 8:00 AM on June 29, 2010 [1 favorite]

I have the same thing happen when I have raw carrots. I love raw carrots though so I usually just have some more :)
posted by Abbril at 8:05 AM on June 29, 2010 [1 favorite]

This article from science news talks about how our gut probably tastes our food, and sends out an "oh man food is coming" signal that bumps up insulin production and whatnot -- if the food then doesn't come, the insulin is just left hanging around, looking for something to eat.

/totally scientific explanation, i swear.
posted by brainmouse at 8:22 AM on June 29, 2010

Data point: crunchy produce (apples, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, and carrots in particular) makes me instantly ravenous.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 1:59 PM on June 29, 2010

According to Seth Roberts (creator of the Shangri La Diet), favorite or very familiar foods will make you hungrier than unfamiliar foods. The theory is that if you're in such a food-rich environment that you can afford to choose your favorite foods, your body will want to take advantage of the surplus and pick up some extra calories. But if you're in a food-poor environment such that you're eating things you've never (or rarely) tried before, your body assumes food is scarce and dampens your hunger.
posted by zanni at 2:05 AM on July 1, 2010