Can’t stop thinking about food? Experts point to an unexpected cause

Amid conflicting guidance, GLP-1 weight-loss trends and recent updates to dietary guidelines, navigating nutrition advice can feel overwhelming.

As weight-loss conversations increasingly focus on medications, some Americans may be looking for more natural ways to quiet what’s often called "food noise."

Here are some tips to help tune it out.

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Food noise can be described as frequent thoughts about food that can sometimes be mistaken as hunger, experts say.

Northwell Health’s The Well describes it as a "steady background loop of food-related thoughts" that can interfere with daily life and decision-making about eating.

This can lead someone to eat excess calories, causing weight gain, obesity and other medical problems like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and sleep apnea, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

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"It’s a lot of unnecessary, excessive thoughts around food that can be exhausting," Kat Garcia-Benson, registered dietitian-nutritionist at VNutrition, a wellness brand that offers plant-based dishes and expert nutrition tips, told Fox News Digital.

"You might have thoughts like: ‘I’m craving this,’ ‘When is my next meal?’, ‘What should I eat to be healthier?’, ‘I should eat this,’ or ‘I shouldn’t eat that,’" added the Texas-based expert.

Certain behaviors can worsen food noise. These may include skipping meals, ignoring hunger clues, relying on rigid food rules and cutting out entire food groups, according to Garcia-Benson.

Studies have shown that some medical conditions, like polycystic ovarian syndrome and depression, can also increase food noise, as can stress and inadequate sleep. Certain medications, such as antidepressants, can also exacerbate it.

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"It’s also important to note that food noise is not a personal failure or [due to] having a lack of willpower," Garcia-Benson added. "For many people, it’s a response from years of dieting/food restriction, stress or inconsistent nourishment."

"The impulse to eat is driven by three core aspects: hunger, satiety, and pleasure or reward," Dr. Vinita Tandon, chief medical officer of Medi-Weightloss, a physician-supervised weight-loss program based in Tampa, told Fox News Digital.

The body naturally makes a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1, or GLP-1, which helps to regulate appetite and food intake.

In people with obesity, however, the body’s natural GLP-1 response may be less effective at signaling fullness, Tandon noted.

GLP-1 medications, including Ozempic, can fast-track weight loss by mimicking a natural hormone that suppresses appetite and helps people feel full sooner, the expert said.

They also offer an additional benefit by acting on the brain’s rewards pathway.

When someone eats a brownie, for example, they experience a surge in a "pleasure hormone" known as dopamine, Tandon said. GLP-1 medications blunt this response, so the person feels no differently eating a brownie than when eating a spinach salad.

"We no longer crave those unhealthy, sugary foods because we don’t derive pleasure from them anymore," she added.

Some triggers of food noise may be internal – like certain hunger hormones that can make us eat more — while others are external, like seeing a favorite snack or getting a whiff of a freshly baked pie.

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"[Some] people find that peeling back the layers and building a healthier relationship with food can quiet the food noise, especially when it comes from a lifetime of diet cycling – like moving between restrictive diets and periods of overconsumption," Garcia-Benson said.

Experts shared the following natural techniques that can help reduce food noise.

Writing down when your food cravings are loudest — such as when scrolling on your phone — can help you identify any triggers.

Research shows that these nutrients help you stay full longer, stimulating natural GLP-1 hormones to send signals to the brain that lessen cravings.

Health experts recommend that adults get 25 to 38 grams of fiber per day and at least 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, with higher protein intakes often advised for appetite control. 

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Focusing solely on food and eating mindfully can help to curb appetite, experts say.

Harvard experts recommend eating more slowly and paying attention to each bite — without distractions like phones or TV — to better recognize fullness cues and avoid overeating.

People who don’t sleep well may have a difficult time being disciplined about food intake the next day. They often crave highly processed and carb-heavy foods to increase their energy, multiple studies have shown.

Health authorities recommend that adults get between seven and nine hours of sleep each night.

Chronic stress lowers the production of natural GLP-1 and leads to high cortisol levels, which can lead to weight gain, according to Tandon.

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Experts recommend managing chronic stress with mindfulness, meditation and consistent physical activity to help lower cortisol levels and support healthier metabolic function and weight regulation, per Cleveland Clinic.

Physical activity has been shown to boost GLP-1 levels. Most health authorities recommend that adults aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week and at least two days per week of muscle-strengthening activities.