Splitting this out of the general thread because the answers kept arriving in ones and twos and nobody could see the shape of it.
The thing that changed for me was not hunger, it was that the constant background negotiation about food simply stopped, and I had not realised it was constant until it was not.
The question I want answered is whether the quiet is the same mechanism as the appetite suppression or a separate one, because they seem to come and go on different schedules.
Roughly, people seem to land in one of these:
- Held where they were and waited it out
- Changed one variable and kept everything else fixed
- Changed several things at once and cannot now attribute the result
- Stopped and reassessed from a clean baseline
Say which and say why — the why is the useful half.
mike.trainer_LA said:The thing that changed for me was not hunger, it was that the constant background negotiation about food simply stopped, and I had not realised it was…
Phantom hunger vs real hunger on food noise: learning to distinguish between the two has been a revelation. Real hunger: gradual onset, physical stomach sensation, any food sounds good. Phantom hunger: sudden, emotionally triggered, specific food cravings, occurs right after eating.
The GLP-1 agonist suppresses real hunger beautifully. Phantom hunger still pops up but I can now recognize it for what it is — an emotional signal, not a physical need. Mindfulness training helped enormously with this distinction.
LipidDoc_ATL said:Phantom hunger vs real hunger on food noise: learning to distinguish between the two has been a revelation.
LipidDoc_ATL said:...regarding food noise mechanism of action...
To build on this — the mechanism is more complex than "it makes you less hungry." GLP-1 agonists:
- Activate hypothalamic satiety centers (appetite reduction)
- Delay gastric emptying (prolonged fullness)
- Potentiate glucose-dependent insulin secretion
- Suppress glucagon secretion
- Modulate reward pathway dopaminergic signaling
- Reduce hepatic lipogenesis
- Have direct cardiovascular protective effects
It's a multi-target drug with systemic metabolic effects. Understanding the mechanism helps us predict and manage side effects.
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Shop Reference Standardsmike.trainer_LA said:The thing that changed for me was not hunger, it was that the constant background negotiation about food simply stopped, and I had not realised it was…
Can confirm. Same sequence, different timescale.
From the other side of the consultation, briefly.
The GLP-1 and alcohol use disorder connection, relevant to food noise: observational data from Scandinavian registries shows reduced alcohol-related hospitalizations in GLP-1 agonist users[1].
The mechanism is plausible: GLP-1R is expressed in the mesolimbic reward pathway (VTA, nucleus accumbens). Agonism at these receptors may reduce the reinforcing properties of alcohol, similar to the reduction in "food noise."
RCTs for GLP-1 agonists in AUD are now underway. If positive, this would be a paradigm-shifting repurposing of existing medications.
[1] Wang W, et al. Nat Med. 2024;30:574-584.