Your Body's Mixed Messages: Confusing thirst with hunger
Misreading cues
One of the classic ways to gain weight and rob your body of the hydration it needs to survive is to mistake your thirst cues for hunger. The reason people confuse the two is because these cues are so similar.
We are conditioned to believe that the following feelings mean you need to grab a bite:
1. Dizziness or feeling light headed
2. Empty stomach feeling
3. Shakiness
4. Fatigue
5.Inability to concentrate
6. Irritability
7. Nausea
A study conducted in 2016, showed that inadequate hydration was linked to higher Body Mass Index and obesity. It also found that satiating your thirst could be key in managing your weight.
When your body urges you to address your empty stomach feeling and replace it with a "full" feeling, it is more often than not alluding to a drink instead of a snack.
One of the ways of figuring out which one it is, is to respond with hydration first always, wait 15 minutes, and then if you are still not feeling full then you can consider a snack.
Better yet, don't even let it get that far. Create your own hydration routine that makes you feel full and actually triggers a pleasure response that is similar to what you get from food. You should be drinking around 5 to 6 cups of liquid a day to better manage your caloric consumption. To keep that going, you have to start consuming drinks that are nutritious but also enjoyable.
Choose healthy drinking alternatives, whose taste, texture and aroma fulfill you like food does. It may not come naturally to you at first. However, conditioning yourself to satisfy your body's cues with drink as opposed to food, could be one of the best new habits to incorporate for weight management and a healthier and happier you.
The best teas for beneficial hydration
Since the very early civilizations, as early as the third century AD in Japan, drinking teas was considered a popular way to stay hydrated. The fruit juice trend, which later led to the advent of its evil cousin "soda" in our modern times, wasn't really part of what people considered thirst quenchers until the 16th century.
Caffeine-free teas, which technically are not teas at all but actually a mixture of herbs and plants, are actually the best way to go when it comes to finding your new hydration routine.
Lipton Tea offers you a wide range of these to choose from. You can find your favorite tea based on nutritional value or flavor, but you are bound to enjoy our Anise, Hibiscus , Chamomile, Mint & Lemon Ginger varieties that are produced from the highest quality plants and agricultural practices available in the market today.
Lipton Anise: Fragrant and beautiful, it tastes best as a warm drink. It is known to calm, soothe and regulate your mood. It is also used to combat bloating and calm coughing in common colds and has antiseptic qualities. However, it is not recommended to ingest Anise regularly when pregnant as it is considered conducive to contractions.
Lipton Hibiscus: Can be a taken as a cold or hot drink. It is widely known for its ability to lower blood pressure, it also boosts liver health and has compounds that are believed to inhibit the incidence of cancerous growths as well as help regulate weight gain. It is also tasty and fragrant with a rich and pleasing deep red color.
Lipton Chamomile: Also known for its beautiful aroma, chamomile is known best for its calming effect. Best taken as a warm drink, chamomile reduces menstrual pain as well as other muscle spasms, and helps boost your immunity.
Lipton Mint & Lemon Ginger: This powerful mix of super hero herbal blends, combines so many super powers together. It can be taken warm or cold and it is as equally nourishing as it is refreshing. Mint is an anti-inflammatory that assists in digestion, and lemon is known best for its immunity boosting and antiseptic properties as well as its ability to assist in the weight loss process, while ginger boosts brain function, is a powerful anti-inflammatory and reduces the incidences of diabetes and cancer.