Should you eat regularly even if you aren't hungry?

I’m not a medical expert, but it’s probably a good idea. My appetite doesn’t match my body’s needs, I get headaches that remind me. When I was cooking for others the imposed schedule kept me on track.

Welome to Fluther!

No,I just wait for quite a long time till I’m hungry again. I don’t like the ‘stuffed’ feeling if I eat too much/out of my appetite.

eating makes me tired but without eating I’ll be even more tired…A paradox!

I think it depends. Lack of hunger can be from many things. If it is emotional stress and has gone on for days, then yes you should eat even if not hungry.

Also, some people rarely feel hungry, I figure it is something with their brains that they don’t feel hunger the same as the rest of us, and they may need to eat when they don’t perceive hunger. These people generally do show signs of hunger that people around them observe, they are irritable, shorter tempered, etc. These same people once they start eating realize then that they are hungry. Maybe having at least a very small snack, like a piece of fruit can help this person get an idea, and keep their blood sugar more level.

If you are normal weight and it is simply you are not hungry around noon one day, and so skip a meal or wait till 3:00 when you do feel hungry I think it is no big deal at all. It is wonderful to be in touch with whether you are hungry or not. Might have to do with how much physical activity you have done that day, how many calories you took in for breakfast, if you are very young your hunger may go up and down depending on whether you are in a growing faze.

I definitely don’t think you should skip meals. Even when I’m not hungry, I still eat a little something so I don’t lose energy or anything like that. :]

It’s one thing to just eat a later lunch, as @JLeslie says above, but if you find you’re not hungry for entire days at a time, you probably should make yourself eat something anyway. There have been times that I have been very sick and one of the symptoms has been a complete and utter lack of hunger but I still have to eat something to keep my strength up.

Also, eating regularly is different for different people. On days I don’t work, I might have a granola bar when i first wake up, wait an hour, have a yogurt, wait a little while longer, have a sandwich, etc. I’m not eating three square meals a day but I am getting enough to eat.

Yes, make yourself eat so your body doens’t freak out and think you’re starving it because it will react by storing up the calories and fat instead of burning them. You’ll be sluggish and cranky. I have always felt a bit nauseous with breakfast but feel a lot better after eating so I start small in the mornings then add in snacks as I get to lunch which is usually whatever I want and then dinner is something minimal.

I don’t think that occasionally skipping a meal is harmful as long as you’re making up the missed calories in other meals. Skip lunch but have a bigger dinner for instance. But it’s definitely not good to be skipping meals on a regular basis.

I’ve always read that you should, but I don’t. I just eat a meal when I get hungry which is usually once a day. Then I have a snack and always a couple of cups of hot cocoa each day.

No, eat smaller meals. I am on a plan that I eat 5 small meals a day.

If you are underweight, yes. If you really need to think hard, for example during an exam, yes.

@mattbrowne well said