Unable to control appetite, ruining weight loss efforts? Chinese medicine doctor Zhang Wenxin: To defeat the "little hunger demon", first help your body put out the fire

My appetite is too strong and I can’t control it by willpower, which causes serious harm to my weight loss efforts. What should I do? Chinese medicine practitioner Zhang Wenxin said that Chinese medicine believes that a strong appetite is closely related to "hot temper". If you want to defeat the "little hunger demon", you might as well help your body "extinguish the fire" first!

The first step to controlling weight is to "suppress appetite", but it is often difficult to do so. Sometimes people want to relieve stress by eating a lot, and sometimes they just want to eat a lot because they are greedy. These foods that induce the "little hunger demon" in the body are usually high-fat and high-sugar foods, including desserts, fried foods, ice cream and hand-shaken drinks. These are notorious landmine foods on the weight loss list. In the long run, they may create a physique that is prone to obesity.

To defeat the "little hunger demon", first distinguish whether it is stomach fire or liver fire.

Chinese medicine practitioner Zhang Wenxin said that Chinese medicine believes that a strong appetite is closely related to "hot temper". Below, Chinese medicine practitioner Zhang Wenxin explains the two most common "hunger demon" constitutions and provides improvement methods so that everyone can easily control their appetite and stay away from obesity.

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that a strong appetite is closely related to "hot temper".

1. [Stomach Fire Type Hungry Demon]

Physical condition description: People who are addicted to eating spicy, fried, grilled and other heavy-tasting and irritating foods for a long time are prone to develop a "stomach fire" physical condition. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that "stomach heat can digest food". The greater the stomach fire, the more gastric acid is secreted, which increases the feeling of hunger, leading to increased appetite and the desire to eat more.

People with "stomach fire" generally have a large appetite, eat quickly, and like an "all-you-can-eat" diet. The fat parts are mostly concentrated in the waist and abdomen, which is a typical apple-shaped body. In addition, it is often accompanied by flushed face, swollen and painful gums, easy mouth sores or nosebleeds, bad breath, strong body odor, thirst and preference for cold drinks, burping, flatulence, bloating, oily skin, enlarged pores, acne, dry and hard or sticky stools, and even hemorrhoids and bloody stools.

Ways to improve: If a person who wants to lose weight wants to get rid of the stomach fire type of hunger demon, in addition to seeking the help of traditional Chinese medicine, using herbs such as hawthorn, lotus leaves, white grass root, tangerine peel, hemp seed, rhubarb, etc. to clear stomach heat, moisten the intestines and promote bowel movements, and remove oil and fat, Chinese medicine practitioner Zhang Wenxin said that establishing a correct diet and regular exercise are also important.

Regarding diet, please stay away from fried, grilled, spicy and stimulating foods, such as chicken fillets, French fries, fried chicken, spicy hot pot, kimchi, satay, wine, curry, and pepper to avoid getting a sore throat. Before eating, you can eat more cool and neutral fruits and vegetables to "lay the foundation" to avoid overeating at the main meal.

Recommended fruits: apples, grapes, kiwis, dragon fruit, tomatoes, oranges, papayas, strawberries, guava, star fruits, passion fruit, loquats, and plums. Recommended vegetables include: loofah, wax gourd, white radish, lotus root, cucumber, mung bean sprouts, amaranth, water spinach, black fungus, cauliflower, cabbage, spinach, enoki mushroom, and carrot.

It should be noted that no matter what you eat, don't forget to "slow down your eating speed" and take a few more bites before swallowing them, which can increase your sense of fullness. If you are not hungry but still feel greedy, you can have a cup of hot sugar-free soy milk or skim milk, or eat some low-calorie fruits such as apples and guava to fill your stomach and avoid eating snacks and desserts.

If you are not hungry but still feel greedy, you can choose fruits with lower calories such as apples and guava to fill your stomach to avoid eating snacks and desserts.

As for exercise, since the stomach meridian is located on the front of the legs, it is recommended to do some exercises that use the large muscles of the lower legs, such as cycling, jogging, brisk walking, taekwondo, etc., which can help to sweat profusely, clear stomach heat, and control appetite and weight in a healthy way.

2. [Angry Hungry Demon]

Physical constitution description: From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, the liver is responsible for regulating the flow of qi throughout the body, which means that the liver has the function of keeping the qi of the whole body unobstructed and smooth, regulating emotional activities, affecting digestion and absorption, maintaining blood circulation, etc. If the flow of qi is not coordinated, the stagnation will turn into fire over time, which will cause "liver qi stagnation" or "liver fire", which is a bit like the autonomic nervous system disorder caused by stress, and sometimes you will not be able to control your urge to eat when you are stressed. In addition, frequent social gatherings and dining, the consumption of rich meat, greasy and heavy-tasting foods, coupled with drinking, lead to endogenous dampness and heat, which over time forms a constitution of dampness and heat in the liver and gallbladder.

From the perspective of modern medicine, when people are under long-term stress, their bodies will secrete a hormone called cortisol. At this time, cortisol will tell the body to continue to replenish energy. Even if not too many calories are consumed, you will still feel hungry and want to eat high-calorie foods. If stress persists, the body will continue to release cortisol, causing the body's internal organs to store fat, which is the formation mechanism of "stress-induced obesity".

People with high liver fire often have bad breath, bitter taste in the mouth, sore mouth, dry mouth and tongue; headache, stiff and sore shoulders and neck, high blood pressure; chest tightness, shortness of breath, swelling and pain in the ribs; tired, sore or dry, red and itchy eyes; depression, irritability, inability to control emotions; insomnia (difficulty falling asleep, shallow sleep, many dreams, easy awakening); indigestion, stomach acid, bloating, constipation; oily face and scalp, acne and pimples; girls also have obvious premenstrual syndrome and menstrual cramps.

Ways to improve: Clinical treatment of obesity caused by excessive liver fire is based on the principle of "soothing the liver and clearing away heat, promoting blood circulation and reducing fat". These herbs include: bupleurum, salvia miltiorrhiza, cassia seed, pink rose, roselle, Pu'er tea, green tea, chrysanthemum, turmeric, mint, etc. These are all commonly used medicinal herbs and food ingredients. However, for this type of people to lose weight, the most important thing is to learn to relax themselves, change their emotions, not just rely on "eating" to vent their emotions, and release stress through moderate exercise. Those who like to relieve stress in a static way can choose yoga, Tai Chi, walking or Pilates; those who like to vent their emotions through more intense exercise are recommended to do jogging, brisk walking, aerobic dance, squash, hot yoga or flywheel.

For obese people with excessive liver fire who want to lose weight, the most important thing is to learn to relax themselves, change their mood, not just rely on "eating" to vent their emotions, and release stress through moderate exercise.

However, Chinese medicine practitioner Zhang Wenxin also said that many office workers get off work very late and often have dinner after 8 o'clock. They don't eat much but cannot lose weight, and they often get too hungry and suffer stomach pain. At this time, it is recommended to prepare small portions of food or meal replacements such as apples and guava to fill your stomach so that you don’t eat too much after get off work. For women who are prone to emotional instability before menstruation, if they have a strong desire to eat a big meal or sweets, they can first drink a cup of warm milk or soy milk. The calcium in it can stabilize the mood, and the protein can increase the feeling of fullness.

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