Hungry again an hour after breakfast? A dietician explains why
Feeling hungry again an hour after breakfast? A celebrity dietician explains how refined carbs, low protein, lack of fibre, poor sleep, and stress affect hunger hormones and blood sugar, and what to eat for lasting fullness.
You finish breakfast feeling satisfied, get on with your morning, and then suddenly your stomach is growling again. If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. According to celebrity dietician and wellness coach Simrat Kathuria, early hunger has less to do with how much you eat and more to do with what you eat and how your lifestyle supports it.
“Feeling hungry soon after breakfast is often a sign that your meal lacks balance,” she explains. Here are the most common reasons why breakfast fails to keep you full.
The real reason breakfast doesn’t keep you full
Too many refined carbohydrates trigger an energy crash
Many popular breakfast choices revolve around white bread, sugary cereals, flavoured yoghurts, or sweet beverages. These foods are high in refined carbohydrates and are digested very quickly. “This causes an instant rise in blood sugar followed by a rapid drop,” says Kathuria. “When blood sugar falls, your body immediately signals hunger, even if you’ve eaten recently.” The result is the familiar mid-morning slump where energy dips and cravings spike.
Protein and healthy fats are what keep you full
Satiety is closely linked to protein and healthy fats. Both slow digestion and help regulate appetite-related hormones. “The key to knowing whether you’re truly full depends on how much protein and healthy fat your meal contains,” Kathuria notes. Eating toast or fruit for breakfast may make you feel full initially. But if there is not enough protein or fat in your breakfast, you will soon feel hungry. Adding items such as eggs, nuts, seeds, yogurt, or nut butters to your breakfast can help a great deal in keeping you full for a longer period of time.
Low fibre means faster hunger
Fibre plays a major role in fullness by adding bulk to meals and slowing stomach emptying. “If your breakfast is low in fibre, your stomach empties quickly, which makes you feel hungry sooner,” Kathuria explains. Whole grains, fruits, seeds, and vegetables help extend satiety and stabilise energy levels through the morning.
Sleep, stress, and hormones also matter
Breakfast doesn’t exist in isolation. Poor sleep and stress can impact the levels of the hormones that control hunger. If you are not getting enough sleep, your body will produce more of the hormone that stimulates your hunger sensation, which is called ghrelin, and less of the hormone that lets your body know that you are full, which is called leptin. If you have high levels of stress, it can also impact the levels of these hormones in your body, making you feel hungrier, especially in the morning.
If you’re hungry again an hour after breakfast, it’s rarely about portion size. Having a well-balanced breakfast with protein, fibre, and healthy fats, along with sufficient sleep, hydration, and stress management, may help you have constant energy levels and make you feel less hungry for a longer period of time.
Also read: Tired of boring fruit bowls? Try this expert-approved chia seed salad for better gut health