The 6 Human Hungers: Part 1: Thirst

So why do we eat? I mean, why do you eat? Do you eat because you're hungry? I want to suggest that we have a whole lot of reasons for eating and they actually often don't have much to do with hunger at all. In fact, there are six different reasons or six different hungers that drive our eating decisions. And some of them have very little to do with food at all. Take for example, thirst. Now, you might think I'm a little crazy at this point suggesting that thirst is a form of hunger, but it is. Because you see, for our ancestors, well, they didn't have water bottles and they didn't have plumbing, they didn't have access to water all the time. So they got a lot of their water from the food they ate. They would walk around, they would eat lots of food, and they would get a lot of their hydration. So guess what? When they started to feel a little dehydrated, their body would send a signal, go eat some food. They would eat the food, they would get the water, and everything be fine. The challenge is today, most of our food has almost no water. In fact, some of our food is basically negative quantities of water. When somebody eats a bag of potato chips, they need water to process. So guess what? They're a little dehydrated. They get a signal, go eat something. Then they eat something that doesn't give them any water and worse, robs water from them. Guess what? Now they're even more dehydrated. Guess what? Another signal to eat. What to do about that? Well, drink water and eat water, rich foods to prevent yourself getting thirsty in the first place. You'd be surprised how much that can reduce your cravings. When you feel these hungers, it's almost too late. So if you address them in advance, then they won't have power over you. Neutralize the six hungers and then you'll find yourself eating less, but more importantly, eating more good quality food as well.