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.
If this helped you, please share it. Restack it.
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.
Coming Up Next:
B is for Blood Sugar Basics.
We’ll break down what blood sugar actually is, how it moves through your body, and why it’s not just about what you eat—but when and how you eat it. If you’ve ever felt confused by numbers, spikes, or the idea of “balancing your blood sugar,” this next post is going to clear the fog.
It’s the missing piece behind energy crashes, cravings, and why you feel hungry even when you just ate.
Click here to read it now, B is for Blood Sugar Basics.
Want to Go Deeper?
If today’s post helped you understand your hunger in a new way, you’ll love what’s waiting inside The Habit Healers Mindset’s Inner Circle.
Every Sunday—right before each A to Z post—I send Inner Circle members:
A private, in-depth guide that goes deeper into the mindset, metabolism, and micro habits that drive real change
Practical tools, weekly habit prompts, and science you can actually use
A full archive of all past guides, organized for easy reference
It’s where we connect the dots between the science, the story, and the small habit that actually makes a difference.
Subscribe now to join the Inner Circle and get next Sunday’s guide in your inbox.
Because healing doesn’t start with willpower. It starts with understanding.
And you’re just one healing habit away.
Worksheet: A is for Appetite Hormones
Calm Your Hunger Signals with Fiber First
Section 1: What You Learned
Fill this out after reading the article.
What surprised you most about ghrelin, leptin, or insulin?
Where in your day do you feel the most “false hunger” or urge to snack?
What signals do you tend to ignore or misinterpret? (e.g., thirst, stress)
Section 2: Your Micro Habit This Week
Choose one meal where you’ll start with fiber first, then track.
My target meal:
□ Breakfast □ Lunch □ Dinner
I will begin this meal with:
Tracking Grid:
Section 3: Reflection
At the end of the week…
What did you notice when you started with fiber first?
Did anything shift in your hunger, cravings, or energy levels?
What would you like to try next week?
A is for amazing. Loved this post. Up next, B is for brilliant and my Belief you will educate and delight. None of this is hard to remember. So glad you walk it out in a way that forms a tiny habit instantly, which grows into the other tiny habits.
Great article. Can't wait for B is for blood sugar. Is the letter I going to be for insulin?