The constant desire to eat, or to eat as much as possible, does not always indicate banal gluttony. Polyphagia is a disease that can be hidden behind the bad habit of eating to your heart's content.

In order not to confuse the condition of a person who has a “ravenous appetite” with ordinary overeating, it is necessary to understand what polyphagia is. Translated from Greek, the expression stands for “poly” - many, “phagia” - eat, eat. That is, a person, without prior physical activity and good reasons, pounces on food and consumes portions that are many times larger than the normal volume.

Polyphagia is a disease that may be hidden behind the bad habit of overeating

The problem arises due to the development of certain diseases, assimilation processes during puberty, when the body requires more useful substances and nutritious food.

Polyphagia is a condition when a person is constantly accompanied by an irrepressible feeling of hunger, bouts of gluttony, called bulimia in medical circles.

Causes of the disease

The nature of the disease is varied. Experts who have been conducting research for a long time have identified three groups of causes of the disease:

• psychogenic factor;
• nutritional failure;
• endocrine pathology, etc.
• Psychogenic failure occurs as a result of pathology in the human psyche. Basically, people in a depressed, stressed state lose their appetite, but there is also a completely opposite reaction of the body. The patient ceases to objectively assess the amount of food consumed.

Important: people with a hysterical character, mental disorders, neurotic pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, and brain tumors are often affected by the disease.

• The nutritional type of disorder is observed when there are failures in food fermentation, digestibility, and a deficiency of useful and nutritious substances in the body.
• Pathology of the endocrine system. Due to a hormonal imbalance, a disruption of metabolic processes occurs caused by humoral deregulation. Patients suffering from this type of polyphagia include diabetics suffering from diffuse toxic goiter.

Important: relatives should pay attention to a sick person if body weight decreases with large amounts of food consumed. A detailed examination of the body and analysis are required.

• Taking certain medications, narcotics, antiallergic drugs, consuming marijuana, and drinking alcohol in large quantities causes a deceptive feeling of hunger.
• To give up smoking. In the first time after making an important decision - quitting smoking, a person may feel hungry and have a desire to smoke in large quantities. In this case, do not panic; after about 1-2 months the problem will disappear by itself.
• In mental disorders, gluttony is called bulimia and is a clear sign of dementia. Currently, the problem affects women who seek to reduce body weight as much as possible through strict diets or refusal to eat. As a result, attacks occur during which a huge amount of any type of food is eaten.
• Feelings of hunger and bulimia often accompany women in the first months after childbirth. Short-term but intense attacks cause a frantic desire to eat, which is why excess weight is gained. As a result, diseases associated with the cardiac, vascular, gastrointestinal, and genitourinary systems develop.

It is worth noting that excessive gluttony in itself is not a threat to human life. The problem may indicate symptoms of a dangerous disease, which should be immediately examined and adequate treatment initiated.

Sometimes polyphagia is caused by quitting smoking

Polyphagia in diabetes mellitus

A frequent companion to a serious disease—diabetes mellitus—is an insatiable desire to eat in large quantities. Polyphagia in this case is explained by the fact that microparticles of broken down glucose cannot bypass certain barriers and enter the human body. For this reason, patients suffer from hunger cravings even after they have eaten their fill. In a healthy state, glucose, the main “fuel” of tissues, gives people vigor and energy. The pancreas is responsible for this function, secreting a vital hormone - insulin. In diabetes, its deficiency occurs or cells cease to be susceptible to it.

The level of glucose in the blood increases and in the cells decreases. Cells lacking glucose send signals to the brain, which “masks” itself as an insatiable appetite.

Important: It is for this reason that polyphagia, provoked by glucose deficiency, is one of the signs of diabetes.

Signs of the disease

The main symptom of the disease is excessive appetite, consumption of food in large quantities. To make an anamnesis of the condition, the doctor must clarify the following points with the patient:

1. When did the first bout of gluttony occur?
2. The feeling of hunger accompanies constantly or at certain moments. At what times of the day is your appetite more powerful, and at what times does it decrease?
3. How much food did the patient consume before symptoms of excessive hunger appeared, and what is the current amount?
4. The amount of food is decreasing or increasing daily to the present day. It is important for the doctor to know whether the amount of food consumed increases from day to day and whether culinary preferences have changed.
5. Has the patient's weight changed? Overeating is often accompanied by a decrease in body weight, which indicates serious pathologies in the body.
6. What is the patient’s physical activity, and have they changed with the onset of gluttony attacks?
7. Have there been any shock or stressful situations recently, or depression?
8. Does the patient use drugs or alcohol?
9. Have you recently quit smoking?
10. When consuming large portions of food, does he feel guilty for overeating.
11. Have you made any attempts to give up gluttony and change your diet for the better?
12. What chronic and acute diseases are currently occurring.
13. What medications has the person with polyphagia taken recently?
14. Are there other symptoms that worry the patient?
15. Did overeating affect bowel movements and stool quality?
16. A number of other questions to reveal the whole picture of the condition.

Important: in some cases, increased appetite is commonplace for people who have always loved to eat well.

The main symptom of the disease is excessive appetite, consumption of food in large quantities

Diagnosis of the disease

It should be noted right away that polyphagia is not a diagnosis, but a symptom. A specialist conducts an examination of the body to find out the reason for the development of a ravenous appetite. Depending on the results obtained, appropriate treatment is prescribed.

Diagnosis methods depend on the suspected causes of the symptom. Blood and urine tests are examined to determine blood glucose levels, thyroid hormone levels, etc. This is also how the presence of drug residues is detected.

A computed tomography scan of the brain is performed if there is a suspicion of a head injury, increased intracranial pressure, etc.

Diagnosis of the disease may include a blood test

Treatment of polyphagia

First of all, the specialist directs treatment to eliminate the causative factors that cause excessive appetite.

• For diabetes, insulin is prescribed, but the patient needs to remember that therapy and monitoring are lifelong measures.
• For diseases of the thyroid gland - hormonal therapy, if necessary - surgery, a course of radioactivation.
• Drug addicts and alcohol abusers require a rehabilitation course of treatment.
• For bulimia and prolonged depression, treatment by a psychiatrist and psychotherapeutic sessions are prescribed.

In cases where gluttony is caused by sudden growth or pregnancy, treatment is not required.

Preventive measures

It is impossible to prevent the development of polyphagia. The only way to curb your appetite is to stop taking medications that cause overeating, such as certain medications, alcohol, drugs, etc. It is important to take medications regularly to lower your blood glucose levels. It is necessary to monitor health from an early age and parents are responsible for this.

A healthy lifestyle is the best prevention of polyphagia

A correct, healthy diet, an active and healthy lifestyle, and spiritual harmony are the key to good health, and will not give any reason to be interested in the question of what polyphagia is. If any symptoms appear that indicate problems in the body, immediately consult a doctor and take preventive measures to eliminate the disease.

Polyphagia, which is an abnormally increased appetite, is often associated with diabetes. This article talks about the reasons that cause increased hunger in diabetics.

Did you know?

The frequent feeling of hunger in diabetics is explained by the inability of glucose molecules to enter the body's cells.

Polyphagia- this is increased food consumption. This is one of the most common symptoms of diabetes, which is characterized by the appearance of an uncontrollable feeling of hunger in a person, leading to a significant increase in appetite. Patients with polyphagia often complain of frequent bouts of hunger. The insatiable hunger associated with polyphagia forces a person to consume excess amounts of food every time he eats. Therefore, even after eating heavily in the evening, diabetics may feel a strong feeling of hunger early in the morning.

Polyphagia and diabetes

As mentioned, polyphagia is often associated with diabetes, a disease that is usually characterized by abnormally high blood glucose levels. Diabetics often eat more than usual. They feel hungry more often and end up eating too much.

In healthy people, the food consumed is converted into glucose, which is used by the body's cells to meet their energy needs. Glucose acts as fuel for cells, allowing them to perform their functions. The hormone insulin, produced by the pancreas, ensures that glucose enters the cells.

In diabetics, glucose does not enter the cells. This can occur either due to a lack of insulin, or due to the insensitivity of the body's cells to the actions of insulin.

In any case, glucose absorption does not occur. A certain amount of glucose is always present in the bloodstream. However, since the cells are not able to absorb it, it accumulates in the blood, and, despite the large amount of glucose circulating through the bloodstream, its deficiency occurs in the cells.

The reaction of cells to a lack of glucose manifests itself in the form of frequent bouts of hunger.

Cells susceptible to glucose deprivation are primarily responsible for causing excess hunger in diabetics. Therefore, when the body's cells can no longer hold glucose molecules, they inform the brain that there is a lack of glucose. In order to stimulate the hypothalamus in the brain, and ultimately create a desire to eat in a person, cells use hormones such as leptin and orexin. Thus, hunger signals sent by the body's cells and then received by the brain are what cause excess food consumption in diabetic patients.

Cells that need glucose also cause diabetics to eat more food than usual when they eat it.

Not surprisingly, diabetes is often described as a disease that causes glucose starvation at the cellular level and leads to polyphagia. So, frequent episodes of polyphagia indicate uncontrolled diabetes. Therefore, effective diabetes control is the key to controlling polyphagia. A sedentary lifestyle does nothing to keep diabetes under control. Exercising daily and eating foods recommended for diabetics often helps get glucose into the cells and reduce hunger pangs. Not taking exercise seriously enough is the biggest mistake diabetics make. Exercising and eating a healthy diet are extremely important habits. Maintaining an active lifestyle is all that is required to manage diabetes and control polyphagia.

Polyphagia is the presence of an insatiable appetite and excessive food consumption.

It occurs due to intensive assimilation processes (for example, in adolescence), or diseases that are accompanied by an increased need for nutrients by the body.

With polyphagia, a person experiences a constant feeling of hunger. The extreme degree of polyphagia - an excessive feeling of hunger ("ravenous hunger") is called bulimia and manifests itself in the form of an attack of gluttony.

Causes of polyphagia

The etiology of polyphagia is varied. The reasons for this phenomenon can be classified into three groups.

Psychogenic disorders. Polyphagia develops as a result of pathological psychogenic conditions. A person loses the ability to objectively assess the amount of food taken. In some cases, this behavior is caused by stress.

Patients with neoplasms in the brain, suffering from hysteria, mental disorders, and gastric neuroses are susceptible to polyphagia.

Nutritional disorders. They occur if, due to some factors, nutrients enter the body in insufficient quantities. This may be due to both a deficiency of nutrients in the human diet and a violation of the processes of their enzymatic breakdown and absorption.

Endocrine pathology. All types of metabolic processes in the body are disrupted due to failures of the humoral regulation mechanism. For example, in patients with diabetes mellitus, disruptions in glucose metabolism occur. Polyphagia also occurs with diffuse toxic goiter.

Particular attention should be paid to patients who experience weight loss due to polyphagia. Such patients require careful examination in a hospital setting.

Polyphagia in itself does not pose a threat to human life. However, it signals that the patient has serious health problems.

Polyphagia often develops in diabetes mellitus. Increased appetite in diabetics is explained by the fact that broken down sugar molecules do not enter the body's cells.

An obsessive feeling of hunger provokes diabetics to consume excess food. Even with a hearty dinner in the evening, patients are haunted by an excessive appetite after waking up.

In healthy people, the digestion of food leads to the formation of glucose, which serves as “fuel” for tissues, giving them energy to perform their functions.

The pancreatic hormone insulin is responsible for the penetration of glucose into cells. In patients with diabetes, there is not enough insulin, or the cells are resistant to it.

As a result, sugar does not enter the cells, and a certain amount of it enters the blood, where it gradually accumulates.

The feeling of hunger is the body's response to increased glucose levels in the blood and cells. Cells deprived of nutrition send a signal to the brain about the disorder in the form of uncontrollable appetite.

Stimulation of the hypothalamus, which gives rise to the feeling of hunger, occurs due to the hormones leptin and orexin. Signals that arise in the body and enter the brain cause increased appetite in diabetics.

It is no coincidence that polyphagia, caused by glucose starvation of cells, is mentioned as one of the symptoms of diabetes.

Frequent attacks of polyphagia suggest diabetes mellitus.

Fighting polyphagia

Controlling the general condition of diabetes is the most effective way to combat polyphagia.
Thus, patients are recommended to lead an active lifestyle, exercise, and provide.

The diet should consist of healthy foods suitable for diabetics. The substances contained in it help sugar penetrate into cells, which helps reduce appetite. Some types of diabetes also require.

A serious miscalculation of diabetics is ignoring physical activity. Physical exercise and a commitment to a healthy diet are the key to successfully solving the problem.

Mobility and consumption of the “right” food will allow both to control polyphagia and fight diabetes.

Polyphagia is a condition caused by a strong desire to eat. Such urges can either be a variant of the norm or be associated with various kinds of diseases.

Causes of polyphagia and possible risks

Severe hunger is considered normal only if a person has abstained from eating for a long time due to one reason or another. Patients with just a good appetite in most cases are not sick.

The list below includes the main reasons that can lead to an excessively strong desire to eat.

1. High physical activity. These inevitably increase the human body's need for key nutrients.
2. Intensive growth. Many adolescents experience increased appetite during development. In this case, the body thus signals the need for additional amounts of nutrients required for cell division and growth.
3. Hormonal imbalances. Overactivity of the thyroid gland, accompanied by excess production of thyroid hormones, is classified as a disease called hyperthyroidism. Similar side effects can result from an increase in the concentration of hormones produced by the adrenal glands. Sometimes female patients develop polyphagia due to hormonal changes in the body characteristic of pregnancy and the menstrual cycle.
4. Diabetes. An increase in sugar stimulates hunger.
5. Depressive states. Most often accompanied by suppression of appetite. Along with this, in patients prone to excessive nervous and/or emotional excitability, depression can cause an uncontrollable desire to eat.
6. . A disease characterized by eating disorders. The essence is this: a person eats, but cannot get enough. The result: excess weight gain, increased stress on the genitourinary, digestive and cardiovascular systems with all the ensuing adverse consequences.
7. Taking certain medications and drugs. Steroids, antihistamines, marijuana and alcohol in large quantities increase appetite. Quitting amphetamines and cocaine can also cause an excessive increase in appetite, as can trying to quit smoking regular cigarettes.
8. Brain injuries in the hypothalamus region. The phenomenon is complex. It is accompanied not only by an excessive feeling of hunger, but also by a number of other disorders, primarily in relation to the psyche and hormonal levels.
   The above reasons are the main and most probable. Along with this, there is a possibility that the true provoking factors will never be identified. Be that as it may, if you experience an excessively strong feeling of hunger, you should definitely consult a doctor.

Characteristic symptoms and signs of the disorder

A condition such as polyphagia is not a diagnosis in its traditional sense. Severe hunger is, first of all, a symptom indicating the presence of another, often more serious, disease (with the exception of the above-mentioned situations in which increased appetite is a variant of the norm).

To better understand the essence of the pathological process and subsequently make the correct diagnosis, a specialist may ask a number of additional questions. Try to answer each of them as reliably and truthfully as possible.

Diagnostic methods

First of all, a qualified specialist will study the medical history of a patient with signs of polyphagia and conduct a survey. Additionally, some studies and examinations may be prescribed.

In accordance with the results of the initial diagnosis, the doctor can develop a treatment program. Based on the results, on average, after 2-4 weeks, conclusions are drawn about the effectiveness of the prescribed therapy and the need to make adjustments to its program.

Diagnosis will vary depending on the suspected causes of excessive appetite. Thus, blood tests are prescribed for almost every patient, because even from the results of this basic primary study one can obtain a lot of important and useful information. For example, excessive glucose levels may indicate the presence of a serious disease such as diabetes, and special tests to check the function of the thyroid gland will detect hyperthyroidism if it is present.

During a toxicological analysis of urine and blood, the fact of taking narcotic substances will be established/refuted - these can also help increase appetite.

If necessary, the doctor will refer the patient for a CT scan of the skull to check for brain damage due to trauma or excessively high intracranial pressure.

Available Treatment Options

For treatment of polyphagia to be effective and gave good long-term results, it is necessary to determine the cause of this condition as reliably as possible. Only after this the doctor will develop a therapeutic program.

For example, if diabetes is diagnosed, insulin and other medications will be prescribed to control sugar. For hyperthyroidism, appropriate medications, surgery or radioactive therapy will be prescribed, depending on the characteristics of the patient’s condition.

Patients who abuse drugs/alcohol will be prescribed a course of rehabilitation. To combat depression and bulimia, active psychotherapy is prescribed. If excessive appetite leaves a negative imprint on a person’s emotional state, the doctor may recommend taking medications such as sertraline and fluoxetine.

Possible side effects are determined by the characteristics of the prescribed medications and the patient’s compliance with dosages and rules for taking them. For example, taking certain medications may be accompanied by allergic reactions, headaches, bowel disorders, etc. – these points are determined by the characteristics of a particular drug. The risks of surgical intervention are standard for all cases: infection and bleeding, but there is no need to worry too much - the capabilities of modern medicine can almost completely eliminate the possibility of such manifestations.

If the patient experiences severe hunger due to intensive growth or pregnancy, any drug treatment, as a rule, is not prescribed. Citizens with diabetes will have to undergo monitoring and take medications throughout their lives. Hyperthyroidism is a serious disease and is treated with long-term hormonal therapy, which is accompanied by many risks and possible side effects, which requires long-term monitoring.

Thus, there are as many methods for treating polyphagia as there are reasons that can lead to its occurrence.

If possible, avoid taking medications and, in general, anything that can lead to uncontrolled appetite. If these are medications, use them strictly in accordance with medical prescriptions. Get regular blood tests to monitor your sugar levels, especially if you have a family history of diabetes.

The effects of increased appetite vary. Some patients gain weight, while others, on the contrary, lose weight. The last point is typical for cases with hyperthyroidism.

Otherwise, the possible consequences are determined by the root cause of the disease. For example, rapid growth during adolescence in most cases does not lead to any serious long-term consequences. Depression, in the absence of a timely, qualified response, can provoke many serious problems, making a person antisocial and withdrawn. In exceptional cases, polyphagia even becomes a cause of suicide.

Left untreated diabetes can also lead to death.

In view of this, if you notice frequent occurrence of strong urges to eat, be sure to consult with a qualified specialist for a comprehensive examination of the body, identify existing problems and take appropriate actions to eliminate them.
Be healthy!

Polyphagia is an eating disorder characterized by increased appetite, constant hunger, and excessive food consumption.

General information

Polyphagia is a symptom of various conditions and diseases, so although this eating disorder itself does not pose a threat to life, attention should be paid to the presence of a constant feeling of hunger.

Suspicion of the presence of a serious pathology arises in cases where polyphagia is combined with a decrease in body weight.

Forms

Polyphagia can be:

• physiological (occurs when there is a true need to introduce food into the body during a period of increased growth, after prolonged fasting, or in the final stages of infectious diseases);
• pathological (develops as a result of a violation of the functional system, which is responsible for the formation of feelings of hunger and satiety).

In severe cases, polyphagia can be accompanied by attacks of painful hunger, weakness and pain in the pit of the stomach (bulimia).

The most common cause of pathological polyphagia in childhood is organic or functional lesions of the central nervous system.

Reasons for development

Polyphagia can be caused by disorders:

• Psychogenic in nature. The ability to adequately assess the amount of food eaten is absent in hysteria, Kleine-Levin syndrome (combined with increased drowsiness), depressive syndrome, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, psychopathy, mental retardation and neurasthenia. Excessive eating may also occur during stressful conditions.
• Alimentary origin, which arise as a result of excess or insufficient intake of nutrients (proteins, vitamins, minerals) compared to the physiological needs of the body. It is observed in nutritional dystrophy and other diseases caused by a monotonous diet, imbalanced diet or disruption of enzymatic systems.
• Endocrine system (diabetes mellitus, diffuse toxic goiter, hyperinsulinism, thyrotoxicosis).

Polyphagia can also be a consequence of organic damage to the central nervous system (observed in epidemic encephalitis, a tumor in the posterior cranial fossa, traumatic brain injury), hereditary diseases (Friedreich's ataxia).

Polyphagia due to false hunger is observed in secretory disorders of the stomach (hyperchlorhydria, gastrosucorrhea, gastric ulcer). In such cases, frequent meals help the patient eliminate or reduce discomfort.

Pathogenesis

Eating is regulated by two hypothalamic centers in a reciprocal relationship:

• ventrolateral (is the “center of hunger”);
• ventromedial (is the “saturation center”).

The leading department is the hunger center, which brings the entire food center into a state of excitement.

Hypothalamic centers are characterized by a high degree of excitability in relation to specific humoral and neurogenic stimuli.

Excitation of neurons in the ventrolateral center can occur when the level of glucose in the blood decreases (according to the glucostatic theory) or when exposed to metabolites of the Krebs cycle (according to the metabolic theory). Also, a feeling of hunger occurs when the level of amino acids, fatty acids and triacylglycerols in the blood decreases, when body temperature is low and when impulses come from the mechanoreceptors of the stomach (“hungry” contractions).

Peptide hormones play an important role in the regulation of food consumption - excess insulin, pentagastrin and oxytocin cause activation of eating behavior. Activation of the hunger center is associated with the activity of the parasympathetic nervous system.

Excitation of neurons of the ventromedial center (saturation center) occurs under the influence of glucose, leptin, cholecystokinin, pancreatic glucagon, somatostatin and serotonin. Activation of this center is associated with activation of the sympathetic nervous system.

The basis of most cases of polyphagia is considered to be disorders of the food center, which include:

• in decreased function of the food center in polyphagia of a psychogenic nature;
• in strengthening this function in the presence of a true need for food from the body.

Disruption of the functioning of the system that forms the feeling of hunger and satiety can occur:

• When metabolic processes are disrupted, leading to rapid utilization of nutrients by tissues. Polyphagia in diabetes mellitus is caused by a disorder of glucose metabolism, in which carbohydrates entering the blood from the intestines are not absorbed due to the lack of insulin synthesized by the pancreas (glucose remains in the blood and the person soon feels hungry again after eating). Polyphagia in thyrotoxicosis causes an acceleration of the metabolism of the body as a whole.
• With increased afferent impulses coming from the mechanoreceptors of the gastrointestinal tract (in humans, strong contractions of the stomach occur during a fasting state).
• If the sensitivity of the food center is impaired.

Symptoms

Polyphagia is manifested by a pathological increase in food cravings - the normal feeling of satiety after eating food does not occur even with its abundant administration.

Diagnostics

Polyphagia is diagnosed based on:

• Anamnesis data. When studying the medical history, the doctor clarifies when the patient developed an excessive feeling of hunger, how often it occurs, how the patient’s weight has changed, what kind of daily physical activity the patient has, whether there has been a recent stressful situation, etc.
• Laboratory data (biochemical blood test, blood sugar test, etc.).
• Data from endoscopy, CT scan of the brain and other additional examinations.

Treatment

Treatment of polyphagia is based on the treatment of diseases that provoked this condition.