Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Hunger Makes You Happy, Relaxed and Focused

If you're a lab mouse, that is, and probably if you're a human, too. Researchers have shown that hunger causes the body to increase the production of a hormone called ghrelin.

Ghrelin helps give you that hungry feeling, but also induces a clear-headed, relaxed state of mind that helps you cope and gives you motivation. It acts as a natural anti-depressant. It's also mildly addictive.

That explains why the very minor calorie restriction built into the Spartan Diet boosts energy, makes you feel better and why you end up enjoying hunger. The secret is that the food you do eat is the healthiest possible food, so you're getting complete nutrition.

The Spartan Diet is governed by something we call the Doctrine of Hunger, which is the 1) a little hunger every day is good for you; 2) perfect nutrition makes Spartan Diet hunger less intense than hunger felt by people on industrialized or, especially, junk food diets; and 3) you achieve it by tailoring your eating and exercise so that when you sit down to your three meals a day, you're a little hungry.