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Quincy
- One of the pleasures during our summer days is enjoying
your favorite ice cream. My favorite, even though I like all
flavors, is a chocolate covered ice cream bar on a stick.
The frozen, cracking chocolate that covers the ice cream is
so delicious against the vanilla ice cream, it is heaven
sent and I will confess, I can’t resist having more than
one.
But I will not feel completely guilty because all food
products are being down sized and the ice cream bar I
remember was almost twice the size. So go ahead and have
two.
Who tells you when its time to eat? Is it watching other
people eat, the aroma of food or is it just a plain old
habit that compels you.
Certain chemicals produced in the brain and in other organs
and tissues regulate the awareness of hunger in human
beings.
Hunger is an unpleasant feeling caused by the body’s need
for food. It is associated with various sensations in the
stomach, as well as with weakness or faintness. Severe
hunger pains called stomach cramps are produced by strong
contractions of the stomach muscles.
The amount of glucose, a sugar, in the blood also affects
hunger. People may become hungry if their body has less then
a normal amount of glucose. We need many substances besides
glucose to avoid being hungry, for growth and good health.
These substances include fats, vitamins, minerals and amino
acids.
An area of the brain stem called the hypothalamus analyzes
the impulse to determine a person’s level of hunger. This
analysis may motivate a person to eat foods that contain
substances that they are lacking.
During our lifetime food is essential for our growth,
development, health and for living a long and happy life.
The amount of food intake differs as we reach different
levels of ageing.
When hunger signals us, we should approach our abundant
table with some thought to the quality of food instead of
the quantity.
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