It’s an instinct when we feel hungry and then sees food, surely the desire and appetite increases instantly. The body performs various functions and responds when it gets stimuli from outside, including when hungry, the body also does various things related to body functions to respond to hunger.
Appetite is controlled by the brain and hormones that work together to respond when appetite increases or decreases and even hunger can be decreased artificially by appetite suppressant.The hunger signal will appear when blood sugar in the body decreases because it has been used as energy – namely energy to carry out various activities. When the signal is well received by the brain, then soon the appetite and desire to eat food will appear. Not only the brain that controls appetite, but various hormones also play a role in this, such as insulin, glucagon, ghrelin, and leptin.
Hypothalamus, part of the brain that regulates appetite
The brain has its settings to regulate incoming and outgoing energy. To maintain this balance, the brain makes appetite up or down. When the energy produced is not enough to support the activities carried out, the brain, especially the hypothalamus, will automatically increase appetite to get more food that enters and then converts it into energy. The hypothalamus is the part of the brain that is responsible for carrying out various body functions by producing various hormones, including hormones that affect appetite. The hypothalamus is the key and centre of the response to hunger and appetite that will issue various body functions in response to stimuli.
leptin hormone
Leptin is a hormone formed by fat cells, which is also responsible for regulating appetite and hunger in the body. In the hypothalamus, there are receptors or special substances that receive leptin signals that will activate if leptin levels in the body are too high. Leptin will increase when the stomach is full and will then give a signal to these receptors. Special receptors in the hypothalamus will receive the message that the stomach is full and reduce hunger and appetite. If the hormone leptin is too low in the body, eating can cause a person to overeat.