Hunger vs. Appetite – The Loaf Diet

Hunger is a physiologic drive for food that occurs when the body senses that we need to eat. The sensation of hunger originates in the brain’s hypothalamus region. The hypothalamus prompts us to seek food in response to signals sent from the stomach and small intestine. If the stomach and small intestine are empty or nearly so, special nerve cells from these organs prompt the hypothalamus to trigger the hunger response. (1)

Hormones also play a role in hunger. When blood glucose levels fall, hormones and hormone-like substances such as glucagons, insulin, neuropeptide Y, and galanin signal the hypothalamus to make us feel hungry (1)

Hunger is often confused with appetite. While hunger is a response to a base need, appetite is a desire for a specific type of food. Having an appetite or craving for chocolate chip cookies can, and often does occur independently of hunger. There is no glandular mechanism (contrary to claims made by pregnant women) that causes us to “need” chocolate chip cookies. As we learn to crave certain foods and also to eat past the point of satiety, many of us experience weight gain or even obesity. Eating in response to emotional discomfort can become a chronically troubling habit for many in our culture. In Western societies, physical attractiveness is largely judged on body proportions, especially in women. The ideal physique as characterized in popular media is narrowly defined and does not include even slightly overweight individuals. This ideal body type is seen as the goal for the population at large even though from a medical perspective it is not healthy or even attainable for most individuals. A woman ten pounds under her medically defined ideal body weight is a better modeling prospect than a woman ten pounds over; although in many ways the heavier woman would be considered healthier by most medical professionals. Ironically, a person who develops a poor physical self image may deal with his pain with food, especially “comforting” foods which can lead to additional weight gain.

A food’s desirability can be expressed as an incentive value. Highly desired foods can motivate us to eat even in the absence of hunger, while less desired foods may be rejected even when we are very hungry. Food can even be used to affect behaviors simply by controlling the food’s sensory appeal. Prisoners in Baltimore’s Maryland Correctional Center who have no problem handling such punishments as solitary confinement or loss of recreation privileges cringe when threatened with “the loaf” . The loaf is a nutritionally complete, though decidedly bland meal.

According to Warden Thomas Corcoran:

Inmates sentenced to loaf-consumption are served the horrible stuff three times a day for about a week (each loaf weighs a pound). If they keep their noses clean, they can then go back to the relative culinary delights of regular prison fare. If not, it's back to the loaf, which Corcoran says adheres to all nutritional guidelines, and even meets the needs of most special diets.

Does it work? Corcoran says that in the two years since the prison's behavior-modification program -- including the loaf -- was instituted, the incidence of inmate assaults on prison staff has been cut in half. "The proof is in the loaf," he says.

If you want to judge for yourself, here's the recipe:


Special Management Meal
Yield - Three Loaves

• 6 slices whole wheat bread, finely chopped
• 4 ounces imitation cheddar cheese, finely grated
• 4 ounces raw carrots, finely grated
• 12 ounces spinach, canned, drained
• 2 cups dried Great Northern Beans, soaked,
cooked and drained
• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 6 ounces potato flakes, dehydrated
• 6 ounces tomato paste
• 8 ounces powdered skim milk
• 4 ounces raisins

Mix all ingredients in a 12-quart mixing bowl. Make sure all wet items are drained. Mix until stiff, just moist enough to spread. Form three loaves in glazed bread pans. Place loaf pans in the oven on a sheet pan filled with water, to keep the bottom of the loaves from burning. Bake at 325 degrees in a convection oven for approximately 45 minutes. The loaf will start to pull away from the sides of the bread pan when done. (2)

Perhaps when diets like “South Beach” and “Atkins” lose their popularity, they will be replaced with “The Loaf Diet” Of course, to be effective the loaf diet would have to come with an enforcement official. A person with the will power to stay on this diet probably could maintain a healthy body weight through traditional means of diet and exercise.

Sources

(1) Nutrition an Applied Approach 2^nd edition Janice Thompson, Melinda Manore pg 82,83

(2) www.npr.org/programs/wesat/features/2002/apr/loaf/index.html - Cached