Pittwater Life April 2017 Issue

Scale to rate your hunger
As the weather gets cooler
we tend to eat more food.
It’s essential for weight control
to recognise and act on the
feedback your body gives you
about when and how much
food you need to eat.
To help you get in touch
with your body, practise considering
how hungry you are
both before and after a meal.
Rating your hunger helps
you recognise whether you’re
eating because you’re truly
hungry.
Similarly, rating your hunger
after eating helps you to learn
that you don’t need to eat
until you are stuffed in order
to survive.
Use the Queensland Health
Department’s Hunger Level
Scale below to rate your hunger
levels.
1 – Starvation, physical pain.
2 – Definite physical
symptoms, headache. Lack
of energy
light-headed.
3 – Beginning of physical signs
of hunger.
4 – Could eat if it were
suggested.
5 – Neutral.
6 – Satisfied.
7 – Feel food in stomach.
8 – Stomach protrudes,
beginning of mood
alteration.
9 – Bloated, definite mood
alteration.
10 – Definitely full; physical
pain, numbness.
Weight management is usually
most successful when you
wait until you are at a 3 before
eating and then stop when
you reach a rating of 6.
If you are watching your
weight it’s also important to
aim for a regular eating pattern
of meals and snacks.
An unstructured eating pattern
is more likely to include
too many discretionary foods
ie “junk foods” which means
too much saturated fat, added
sugars, added salt and kilojoules
at the expense of fibre
and important nutrients.
Health & Wellbeing
Celebrating 25 Years
APRIL 2017 45