Appetite when eating cooked food

[Paleo Donk]

I've noticed that my appetite is unbelievably huge when I eat cooked food. I have had the chance to eat unlimited cooked food and fruits several times now in the past 4 months of my raw paleo experiment and each time I gorge myself until I feel sick. I have no off switch.

How does your appetite respond to cooked food?
Is it noticeably increased?
Can you pull yourself away?


Today, I had a chance to eat as much food as I could and I did so and then waited a bit and then ate as much as I could again. I wonder if I am missing out on all sorts of nutrition that cooked food is able to give me? Even when I was on my SAD I would generally eat till I was sick and very sleepy. It seems I would always crash after eating. Maybe its all in my head.

[TylerDurden]

I always have had an endless appetite when eating cooked foods, both before and after going rawpalaeo. Pre-RPD, I used to gorge myself on crisps("chips" to Americans?) and chocolates and similiar junk-food and just couldn't stop, becoming extremely unhealthy.


Part of the explanation for this is that cooked/processed foods commonly contain addictive opioids which affect the brain re dopmaine levels etc., and compel one to continue eating even if one doesn't need it.  Also, the fact that cooked foods are so lacking in nutrients means that the body doesn't get enough of the right nutrients and so compels one via hormones etc. to keep eating everything until, hopefully, the person in question consumes the right nutrients needed by the body.

I'm not worried re issues of cooked foods becoming addictive for me. I do occasionally eat some cooked foods, due to social pressure etc., and I usually pay for it the next morning with at least  fatigue; some types of cooked foods give me intense pain as they pass through my digestive system(intestines?) or make me vomit  so that's a good disincentive.

[KD]

Well, I think this forum is such a narrow slice within the raw community, but if you checked other raw forums you'd notice this to be extremely common. And I think you've hinted on many of the possible factors

I know when I first went raw, espeically being out places or if I started eating cooked foods it would be impossible to stop. Part of this was I was not getting nearly enough food, and part one would suspect would have something to do with nutrition (was vegan - but didn't have the same problem on cooked), but similarly the types of things I would eat wouldn't have a whole lot of that so there was clearly some comfort issues.

If you want my honest opinion, I'd say from the other posts it to be more on the psychological end. But there could be underlying nutritional/mineral things or other internal stuff. You could do some simple experiments to see.

you could undereat, and than eat from a variety of really non-entertaining cooked foods like brassicas and tubers, without condiments, and see how much you eat. and you can do the same after being full of RPD foods. Then you could do the same (empty-full) with something with greater concentration of excito-toxins and opioids but is generally seen to have less nutrients, like chocolate, or better to stay within starchy things like pastas and such for accuracy.

I do remember being totally crazed at certain points, especially living in a city, like leaving my appt to wander around seeing how I can fix. My first thanksgiving was also really embarrassing, as it was with a bunch of friends, and they knew I was doing the diet, and cheated for sure on cooked veg food. I don't seem to have this problem at all anymore, and I likely do have some mineral and nutritional problems as well as a host of other issues. But even when I'm grossly underrating on this diet I don't seem to crave cooked foods. and the cooked tubers I made recently as my experiment I threw 80% out.

seafood and/or minerals from raw vegetables are the only other things I can think of to try.


edit: also non sweet fruits like tomatoes and cucumbers/peppers. if you find yourself binging on these in the same fashion as sweet fruits or cooked foods then you know if there might be nutritional issues at play.

also what I say psychological, I really mean more of a combined psychological/physiological withdrawal. from years on raw veg forums, you see reports of people smelling/tasting certain things or thinking they eliminated something that smells like pork three years in or something, many have unconscious dreams of fried foods and such. I've had some of this, and even though I think some cravings can be legitimate, many are withdrawal, mental, or some kind of internal issue like fungus and other things that eat within us that like such foods.

[Paleo Donk]

Thanks for the responses. I wasn't sure if I was alone with my appetite struggles with cooked food. I don't think cooked foods would be responsible for increasing nutrient absorption for me and was simply searching for answers for my binges. Raw fats and meats still seem to satisfy me without cravings or binges while tasting good at the same time. Generally, the longer the food is aged the better I like it.

[chucky]

I'm having the same thing but only with ground meat. I can eat until I get sick and would eat some more later.

Tyler mentioned opioids which might be it. But there is also glutamate. You might know about monosodium glutamate which is food enhancer. Well, cooked foods release free glutamate which can act as monosodium glutamate and make you crazy about the food. So you will overeat as you do with junk food.

[Haai]

My appetite has increased hugely since eating raw food only. I rarely get a feeling of being full nowadays. I really don't crave cooked food at all. But I think I need to increase my fat intake (ordered some suet which will arrive on friday), I don't know if consuming more fat will change my appetite.

[TylerDurden]

My appetite has increased hugely since eating raw food only. I rarely get a feeling of being full nowadays. I really don't crave cooked food at all. But I think I need to increase my fat intake (ordered some suet which will arrive on friday), I don't know if consuming more fat will change my appetite.

It should reduce your appetite. At least that's what I found. Especially in the case of raw suet as I never really liked the taste of it.

[Haai]

yeah I hope so, because at the moment I'm spending a fortune on meat. I also eat a lot of avocados, which aren't the cheapest things in the world.

[TylerDurden]

The key thing is variety. I mean there is quite a lot of raw wildcaught seafood which is dirt-cheap(sardines/mackerel/sprats etc.)  Finding cheap raw 100% grassfed meat at low prices is more difficult in the UK. What you'd need to do is ask dozens of farmers by phone what they feed their animals on throughout the year. These farmers should already make it clear on the farm-website etc. that they don't do intensive farming(ie no vaccines/no growth-hormones and the like). Many farmers simply cannot afford the overly expensive conversion to official organic status, so they may well still provide 100% grassfed meats, be as good as organic status, but not officially be organic as such.

If you're anywhere near London, the lfm.org.uk website has numerous markets listed in which some might have farm-stalls offering the sort of thing I mentioned above.

You could also go in for alternate-day fasting, a kind of intermittent fasting, which would reduce your food-budget quite a bit.

[the PresiDenT]

I've noticed that my appetite is unbelievably huge when I eat cooked food. I have had the chance to eat unlimited cooked food and fruits several times now in the past 4 months of my raw paleo experiment and each time I gorge myself until I feel sick. I have no off switch.
How does your appetite respond to cooked food?
Is it noticeably increased?
Can you pull yourself away?

Ya i get the same thing. i am almost pressured to eat it with my family tho, my dad HATES me eating raw meat. After i do eat it, i get reallllly itchy all over, even though its cooked grassfed meat. Anyone else get  that?

[raw]

My appetite has increased hugely since eating raw food only. I rarely get a feeling of being full nowadays. I really don't crave cooked food at all. But I think I need to increase my fat intake (ordered some suet which will arrive on friday), I don't know if consuming more fat will change my appetite.

this sounds like ur body deprives of nutrition. even after eating raw meat, if u have that feeling, than increase ur organs and fat intake. i prefer egg yolk than animal suet. but recently i surprise to see my love on tripes, which is loaded of yellow fats. i wouldn't chose avocado as my main source of fat. i don't consume dairy but raw butter. also if u can do sunbathing and sun gazing, that'll reduce ur appetite dramatically.

when i eat cooked meal, i can eat a lot, but after than, i feel to eat some desserts. and than i feel to sleep. i just don't get that.

[miles]

Meat is the most satisfying/'filling' thing for me to eat. Fat and sugars will give you energy, but if you want to feel completely satisfied/'full', I think you need to eat more meat.

[yuli]

Eating cooked meat also makes me really full, even after going raw paleo...
A few days ago I decided to eat some baked chicken to see how I would feel, I ate some and got extremely full & satistfied.
I have not tried cooked food other then meat after going raw paleo so I don't know about the other stuff.
I know pre-raw paleo I would overeat and feel tired after, especially when I ate breads with meat.

[Hannibal]

each time I gorge myself until I feel sick. I have no off switch.

I've got the same experience.
The same is with raw dairy, esp. cream.

[raw-al]

When I eat out (cooked food) my stop eating switch malfunctions. I eat till I am sick and then I feel rotten for at least a day. Cooked food always has a bad effect the next day for me.

I theorized that cooked food normally has taste enhancers that override the off switch or scream out so loud that you can't hear it. 

I eat substantially less by volume. My stomach has definitely shrunk and I steer away from sweets. Potato chips still hold a thrill but I normally stay away.

Every once in a while a Poutine (French fries with melted cheese and gravy) sneaks by the guarded gate LOL .

[TylerDurden]

I heavily disagree that cooked food tastes better. One main reason why spices are used for cooking is to enhance the taste because cooked food tastes so bland. Raw foods of high quality, such as raw wild game have a far richer taste, it is simply that people are not used to it .

Addiction to cooked foods(plus raw dairy and grains) has more to do with addictive opioids in them which boost levels of dopamine etc. in the brain giving a drug-like effect.

[yuli]

There is a few foods that taste better to me cooked without any spices at all, but most foods do taste better raw...
But for example chicken...raw chicken doesn't really taste that good to me, and others have agreed it is very bland...but plain cooked chicken drumsticks, even just simmered in a bit of water, taste delicious, as does the water after they have been cooked in it, the cooked bones and I always chew off the cartilage.
When salmon or trout is baked, it gets a completely different taste, whenever I have eaten baked trout or salmon, or simmered in water, I get very very full from it. Alternately when I get my hands on some delicious raw wild salmon I can eat a lot more of it and feel less full. These are the two cooked foods I still do not find addictive maybe because they are so simple in the way they are prepared.

Raw-al Poutine is very addictive and yummi! Man if I ate that now I'd be paying for it ha ha! But the real Quebequois poutine has the cheese curds on it that are squeaky, and not melted. When I lived in Montreal thats how I learned about Poutine...when I moved to Ontario, I ordered what they called "Poutine" and they gave me fries with melted cheese on it, thats not Poutine, thats just fries with melted cheese & gravy. lol...
Have you tried the Poutine with squeaky curds as a pose to melted cheese?

If I have to eat out I order a large extra-rare done steak, its hard not to get full from that  

[Hannibal]

raw chicken doesn't really taste that good to me, and others have agreed it is very bland...

It's because chickens are notoriously grain-fed.

but plain cooked chicken drumsticks, even just simmered in a bit of water, taste delicious, as does the water after they have
been cooked in it, the cooked bones and I always chew off the cartilage.

It only proves that cooking is a disaster, 'cause it makes low-quality product more tasty. It results in eating unhealthy crap food, which we wouldn't even touch when it was in a raw state.

[Hannibal]

Addiction to cooked foods(plus raw dairy and grains) has more to do with addictive opioids in them which boost levels of dopamine etc. in the brain giving a drug-like effect.

+ AGEs which have got the addictive proporties too

[yuli]

It's because chickens are notoriously grain-fed. It only proves that cooking is a disaster, 'cause it makes low-quality product more tasty. It results in eating unhealthy crap food, which we wouldn't even touch when it was in a raw state.

That is true...I would never think of cooking my grass-fed beef in any way, that would be stupid. I wish there was some magical way to make soup without cooking...

[raw-al]

I heavily disagree that cooked food tastes better. One main reason why spices are used for cooking is to enhance the taste because cooked food tastes so bland. Raw foods of high quality, such as raw wild game have a far richer taste, it is simply that people are not used to it .

Addiction to cooked foods(plus raw dairy and grains) has more to do with addictive opioids in them which boost levels of dopamine etc. in the brain giving a drug-like effect.

Your use of the word addictive is fascinating because I do not find cooked foods addictive at all. I gave up a lifetime of eating them in a heartbeat and other than my stomach readjusting to the new variety of foods that I was inserting into it I suffered no withdrawal from the cooked foods whatsoever. The bacteria and processes to digest a totally foreign material had to be introduced and encouraged which took awhile. Now that the new processes are in place the old cooked food paradigm doesn't work.

The flavours in raw foods are more subtle (some might say bland) and do not overpower the senses and thus your actual stomach volume is your guide to your consumption. That was my point. I like the subtlety now, but initially the smell of meat was repulsive in the fridge and in the house for myself and my GF. Now I am accustomed to it and do not smell it. The smell of Indian cooked food I found very strong when I first started to eat it, but after awhile I did not notice it but my friends who were not accustomed to it noticed it when they walked into my house.

[raw-al]

There is a few foods that taste better to me cooked without any spices at all, but most foods do taste better raw...
But for example chicken...raw chicken doesn't really taste that good to me, and others have agreed it is very bland...but plain cooked chicken drumsticks, even just simmered in a bit of water, taste delicious, as does the water after they have been cooked in it, the cooked bones and I always chew off the cartilage.
When salmon or trout is baked, it gets a completely different taste, whenever I have eaten baked trout or salmon, or simmered in water, I get very very full from it. Alternately when I get my hands on some delicious raw wild salmon I can eat a lot more of it and feel less full. These are the two cooked foods I still do not find addictive maybe because they are so simple in the way they are prepared.

Raw-al Poutine is very addictive and yummi! Man if I ate that now I'd be paying for it ha ha! But the real Quebequois poutine has the cheese curds on it that are squeaky, and not melted. When I lived in Montreal thats how I learned about Poutine...when I moved to Ontario, I ordered what they called "Poutine" and they gave me fries with melted cheese on it, thats not Poutine, thats just fries with melted cheese & gravy. lol...
Have you tried the Poutine with squeaky curds as a pose to melted cheese?

If I have to eat out I order a large extra-rare done steak, its hard not to get full from that  

I agree that chicken is not tasty raw. The chicken I had was free range and was not good.

Fish is surprisingly very tasty raw and the fresher the better.

A friend of mine in Montreal turned me on to the Quebecois poutine with the "squeeky curds"  and it is a lot better.

The only steak I have ever eaten that I truly liked was one from Morton's in Houston TX. God only knows what they put in it to make it so delicious, but it was awesome. Normally cooked steak is not great for me. However I like it raw and I do not overeat it.

[yuli]

Your use of the word addictive is fascinating because I do not find cooked foods addictive at all.

I think he meant that they are addictive during the time you are eating them. An example is having a carton of ice cream and not being able to stop, or a box of cookies...etc  

The flavours in raw foods are more subtle (some might say bland) and do not overpower the senses and thus your actual stomach volume is your guide to your consumption.

I beg to differ on this...if you ever tasted the raw salads I make with roots etc you'll have flavor coming out the ears lol
Fruits are raw and extremely flavorful....
Nuts all have particular flavors, and although not strong they are definitely peculiar...
Meats are only flavorless when too fresh and out of the fridge, once I let a good meat sit around a bit, its flavor develops nicely.  
And the raw cheese I get (although not paleo) has almost too much flavor, lol, so much I can only eat a bit.

[yuli]

A friend of mine in Montreal turned me on to the Quebecois poutine with the "squeeky curds"  and it is a lot better.

That is the one and only poutine, its a traditional Quebec delicacy, the other ones with melted cheese are not worthy to be called poutine... Its like calling a bread-less sandwich a sandwich, a sandwich with no bread is just not a sandwich...

[miles]

Meats are .. flavorless when too fresh and out of the fridge

Not to me.