Home Remedies

Loss of Appetite: Symptoms, Causes & Remedies

When you have a low desire to eat or you don’t feel hungry for a longer duration than normal, that means you lost your appetite. Many factors can cause poor appetite including mental and physical illness, anxiety, stress, depression, kidney problem, or bacterial infection.
The signs of Appetite loss are fatigue, lethargy, poor digestion, nausea, weight loss, irritability, and frequent Sickness.

Home Remedies

Small Meals More Frequently: Eating three heavy meals can be troublesome and make you feel heavy. A better encouraging way to eat is to divide your three main meals into five or six smaller meals. Start increasing the portions of your meals as your appetite increases.

Nutrient-Rich Foods: Generally, with low appetite you tend to eat empty calories like candy, chips, ice cream, baked and junk foods to gain weight. The better idea is to concentrate on foods that provide you with calories and nutrients like protein and healthy fats for example skip the ice cream and have a cup of plain Greek yogurt with some berries and cinnamon for sweetness.

Cut on Fibres: Though High-fiber diets are suggested for a balanced diet, they promote feelings of fullness and reduce calorie intake for those looking to lose weight.

Limit Beverages with Meals: Taking fluids before or during meals reduces your appetite and makes you eat less. Avoiding water pre-meal could increase your calorie intake.

Supplements: Some Supplements could also help to increase your appetite. Try zinc, thiamine, fish oil, and echinacea supplements.

Make Mealtime Social and Fun: To make foods more pleasant to eat, you can invite friends or family over for meals. If that is not possible, try eating while watching TV or listening to music or pick a better place at home like the garden or balcony.

Drink Your Calories: If you don’t feel like having solid heavy meals every time, try smoothies, milkshakes, or juices which can be good meal-replacements. Drinking your calories might be more motivating than chewing your food.

Choose Foods You Like: Whenever you sit down in front of a meal you should enjoy it, simply means choosing what you want or crave to eat.

Some foods can delay digestion and produce gas, resulting in a “heavy stomach” feeling and reducing your appetite. Fennel, peppermint, black pepper, coriander, mint, ginger, and cinnamon, help reduce this feeling.

Some tips to help digestion and raise appetite…

Mix a tbsp of jaggery powder with half a tbsp of ground black pepper.

Take half a tbsp of ginger juice with a pinch of rock salt in it. Consume it before your meals. Go for ginger tea or include ginger in your diet.

Mix two tbsp each of Indian gooseberry juice, lemon juice, and honey in a cup of water. Drink this concoction daily in the morning on an empty stomach.

Chew two-three cardamoms before the meal. You can also add cardamom powder to your regular tea.

Soak oil roasted ajwain seeds in water for some time and drink the strained liquid.

Make a powder of Ajwain seeds and mix it with salt. Have it before meals.

Crush 1 tbsp cumin seeds and 1 tbsp carom seeds coarsely between your palms and chew the mixture.

Drink a cup of peppermint tea daily to revive your appetite.

Soak some tamarind in water. Add little sugar, pepper, and cloves to the pulp. Drink this regularly until the condition improves.

Add garlic and coriander to your diet to aid in better digestion.

Bitter greens such as kale, endives, collard, arugula, dandelion, and red or green mustard regulate your digestive system. Try pomegranate juice and basil tea sometimes.

Keep moving: Your body burns more calories if you exercise, to sustain your energy levels. Physical activity can increase your appetite. Try some yoga asanas for better digestion & appetite. Start morning or evening walks/Jogging.

Avoid Strong Food Odours as they can’t put you off. Make your plate colourful and tempting. Pick small and easy-to-eat and healthy snacks. Try more fruits and drink lots of water.