Has anyone else started eating less without trying to?

[NNN0LHI]

Its like my appetite has dwindled for no apparent reason. I can afford to eat all I want but I am eating about half of what I used to. And I feel fine and see a doctor who I trust regularly. My weight appears to be holding too.

Could this be a subconscious reaction that humans and animals get during general hard times. I am pretty sure it is a psychological thing rather than a physical problem.

Is it just me or have others noticed this phenomena?

Don

Edit: Last week I treated myself to a fillet mignon dinner at my favorite restaurant with the salad, soup, bread and everything. I ate it all but felt like hell afterwards. Actually for a couple of days. I wouldn't ever do that again. Thats how bad I felt. Like I ate way too much.

[lonestarnot]

1. It has had the grasshopper affect on me. I want to eat it all while it's still here.

:P

[magellan]

2. Don't talk to me.

I'm a woman and I'm storing fat for the cold, cruel winter! (In FL. lol)

[seemslikeadream]

3. All I eat are rice cakes

and drink homemade iced tea. Water from the tap, What a novel idea! Did you know it's OK to DRINK IT?

[MorningGlow]

16. You wouldn't say that if you saw the insides of the pipes in our house

Not to mention the chemical plant and the metal plant at the edge of the village. (The village is on well water.) :scared:

[Dogmudgeon]

4. I now eat one meal a day

Basically, I fast most of the day. It makes me feel better, and I have little hunger. And it was a spontaneous thing; I read somewhere that short-term fasting helps many people with various health problems, so I just started doing it without fanfare. But I don't think it's in response to the hard times.

Some people compensate by eating MORE, instead. But hard times do effect people, some radically, and not always for the better.

--p!

[crim son]

5. I've had that happen during periods of change,

positive or negative. It's not happening now however and in fact I think my body is worried about winter. :D

[marions ghost]

6. stress & doing the vigil?

--if so, less energy devoted to digestion can help get through it. (As long as you don't stop eating completely).

You'll probably get back to eating after the election?

[Sarah Ibarruri]

7. It's very scary isn't it? Did I say how much I hate Republicans? nt

[Clovis Sangrail]

8. I'm storing fat for the end days :D /nt

[dysfunctional press]

9. nope.

:shrug:

[panader0]

10. Yeah, I lost a filling and can't afford yet to get it fixed.

So I have lost about ten pounds.

[Wiley50]

11. Same with me though I think becoming middle age causes it.

At 53, I'm no longer as active as I once was

esp. since my back has major problems that require me to sit most all of the time.

I think as long as I take vitamins that it does no damage

and probably keeps a lot of weight off that I don't need.

I was 175-185 for most of my life. Now it's 205-209

pretty good for no exercise

[morningglory]

12. Eating mustard greens out of my garden today and mullet fish out of our bay.

Today. Look forward to it. Ate a sweet kumquat off the little "tree" on my way inside.

[tilsammans]

13. Same here

I eat about half as much food as I used to eat.

Not noticing much diff in weight, however. Bleah. :shrug:

[WillowTree]

14. I wish.......

[On the Road]

15. You Might be On to Something

I'm cleaning out everything in the pantry and freezer and avoiding the grocery store and restaurants. Have some pretty strange combinations, and it results in a lot less food.

I do suspect it's a way of hunkering down.

[MorningGlow]

17. Not in general, but I have lost my sweet tooth (which for me is saying something)

I'm addicted to Chips Ahoy cookies, which we keep stocked in the house because MG Jr. likes them. Usually I have to struggle all day, every day, to stay away from the package sitting on the counter, or I'd eat all of them. Not lately, though--been coexisting peacefully. In fact, yesterday I walked into the kitchen, thinking I wanted something to eat, looked at the cookies, and thought, "Nah." And walked away. :wow:

[NNN0LHI]

18. Now the sweet tooth is something I haven't lost

I can still tear up a box of Ho Ho's.

Don

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

19. Same here. I'm normally a food addict and I have to make myself eat meals now.

[conscious evolution]

20. I have.

I think part of the reason for me is the changes I have made in my diet.
I recently cut out most of the high fructose corn syrup.I have also cut down on the amount of preprocessed foods I eat.Plus I have been eating produce fresh out of the garden.
Since then I have only lost a couple of pounds but I have lost a lot of body fat.

I have also noticed the same thing with my housemates.There are twelve of us plus visitors and it seems that everyone has cut back.What clued me in was the amount of leftovers seemed to be getting larger.We are cooking pretty much the same amount of food but it seems that we are eating less of it.

I know what you mean about the big meals.When I do splurge like that I feel like crap for a few days afterwords.The thing is is that I seldom want to pig out like I used to anymore.So I'll take that as a good thing.

As for the psychological aspect of the phenomenom all I can say is this-For me it was a conscious decision to change my diet and lifestyle.But it was one based on insights on what my subconscious mind has been telling me for years now-that our society is pretty fucked up right now and it is going to get worse before it gets better.

[screembloodymurder]

21. No, I'm eating more.

I'm storing all the calories I can while the living is easy. I'll be able to live off my fat for months.

[vanderBeth]

22. It's weird that a lot of people have been saying this.

I just noticed this for me. I've been eating a couple of pieces of toast with preserves and maybe some juice for the whole day. I have lost a little weight, but I haven't been hungry lately.

[progressivebydesign]

23. No. Had a nice blueberry waffle for breakfast, boiled egg, sundried tomato sausage.

My appetite is just fine.

[Sugar Smack]

24. Yes. I think for me it began with an effort toward a pure diet.

This means having an apple in the morning, brown rice, beans & chicken mixed up as a meal, a baked potato, small meals. I'm glad you brought this up. I consider it, too. I think you're right about our instinct to be resourceful when the threat of hard times is there. I think you are getting used to that and that sucking down a big meal as a change feels excessive to you.

Edit- maybe I can be trendy & call it something like "streamlining". :D

[bridgit]

25. Yes. It makes sense for several reasons, but I do hear you about...

having done so in response to lean times. We're eating smaller portions and have been shopping farmers markets all season. Better prices/fresher food. Or straight from the fields. There seems no denying that America is headed for a comeuppance. Being reasonable about a range of issues is very much in our futures http://www.california-grown.com

[pitohui]

26. yes i noticed it right around when i turned [age i'm embarrassed to mention]

if you're middle aged and your appetite suddenly falls, you should get it checked w. a doctor and i have done so but apparently my appetite has just re-set itself -- loss of appetite CAN be a warning sign of serious problems from depression to cancer but it is also a normal part of getting older, so just let your doctor give you a check-up and let her see what she thinks -- sounds like you already took this step so no need to worry

if this is what has happened, you are lucky, the unlucky ones have the same appetite they have in youth but do not have the ability to burn it off, so they start adding pounds every year in middle age

w. my favorite foods/restaurants, i plan what i will take home from the meal, some stuff reheats or even gets better after sitting 24 hrs, food w. italian sauces is often even better the next day, no matter how good the restaurant, i am not shy to ask for a doggie bag

i pretty much have given up on the bread/salad, as these items are not usually anything special -- focus your limited appetite on what the restaurant does best

also a glass of red wine will stimulate your appetite before the meal :-)

i had to regain some weight after a trip to africa, it took a number of months, but i'm back to normal now

bon appetit!