Have you lost appetite for food?

Appetite is defined as any of the instinctive desires necessary to keep up organic life, especially: the desire to eat.

Many a time, people are faced with a situation of not having appetite for food; some in the morning and so they are not able to eat breakfast. For others, they cannot eat from morning to evening and even for days sometimes.

Loss of appetite can be related to an underlying medical condition. It may also be caused by ageing, emotional or physical stress, reaction to certain medicines and pregnancy (usually in the first trimester).

It is often observed that babies will reject food periodically due to discomforts they feel during teething for example and also during the attainment of certain developmental milestones. This comes as a normal occurrence since they soon accept food afterwards. Some of them will even take breastmilk at the time they reject solid foods; thus they have some nutrient and energy cover during such down times.

I know of babies who also do not have appetite for food at all, so they find it very difficult to eat, even they do not take breast milk as expected. A lot of the time, the transition between exclusive breastfeeding and complementary feeding on the attainment of age 6 months presents a great appetite challenge to babies. These are difficult situations for mothers especially. First there is the need to assess the situation on the grounds of preference, before drawing in desires or appetite. By this, babies have to be tried on a variety of foods to see whether they will eat or not. In addition to that, it is worth changing cooking methods and altering contents of spices and ingredients to make food more appealing to them. A lot of the time, by the time you complete these rounds of experiments, your baby will have something to eat and enjoy. Simply put, do not be quick to label your baby as not having enough appetite; explore these options first.

There are times also that babies are labelled as not having appetite for food because they do not eat a bowl full but a spoonful. This holds true for adults and the elderly as well; it is also not a fair judgement. Anyone who can eat just a spoonful, can also eat a bowlful. It is just a matter of time. What has to be done is to employ the usefulness of small but frequent feeds. So by the end of the day, that fellow would have had enough nourishment.

Treating any underlying medical condition for which one may have lost appetite is a key step in regaining appetite. Also, when there is no appetite, do not waste your time on eating empty calorie foods; rather take energy and nutrient dense foods, so that the little food that goes into your system will do the job of energizing and nourishing you.

If stress, grief, heartbreak or other emotional problems cause loss of appetite, managing the root cause is significant. General stresses may be remedied through relaxation techniques such as massage or exercise. When emotional factors are severe or persistent, seek expert advice from a psychologist.

If a person’s body has grown accustomed to undereating due to loss of appetite or other factors, it must regain the physical and emotional desire to eat. By reminding the body to eat close to the same time every day, hunger may reoccur naturally. The Mayo Clinic suggests setting a routine eating schedule and sticking to it, whether you are hungry at that time or not. Even small amount of foods consumed at appropriate times may prove beneficial if skipping meals has become habitual.

Fluid intake can fill you up and reduce your appetite for solid food. To prevent this from occurring, fluids can be limited during and between meals. Sipping fluids rather than gulping them may help. If a person has difficulty tolerating solid food, fluids should be limited to nutritious, calorie-dense fluids, such as vitamin-fortified protein shakes.

A pleasant eating environment can enhance relaxation and improve your appetite and eating habits. Your dining details might include lit candles, soft music and decor in a person’s favorite color scheme as well as no television or radio. A pleasurable dining experience can also include comforting or enticing aromas, such as cinnamon-spiced apples or other scents that a person enjoys.

Performing mild exercises is also a very important step in gaining appetite for food so stay active. Remember, there are so many other benefits to exercise as well.

Stay blessed, stay home and stay safe from coronavirus.