1. It’s not an ordinary hunger pang
Chances are, you have experienced hunger pangs a few times before. In many cases, they are relieved by just a few bites of filling food with a glass of water.
But, polyphagia in diabetes is not an ordinary kind of hunger. For one, it is intense. And while eating can satiate it temporarily, it will eventually persist. In other words, eating more or eating more regularly will not solve it.
2. Polyphagia can also include cravings
While polyphagia in diabetes is usually described as “constant hunger,” please note that it can also involve cravings for a specific food. Both can lead to overeating.
3. Starvation amidst plenty
Why does polyphagia in diabetes happen?
In diabetes, you either have a deficiency in insulin or insulin resistance. The result is that sugar, which we’re supposed to convert to energy, cannot enter the cells. The brain then believes that we still need food, causing polyphagia.
This is also the reason why some people call diabetes “starvation amidst plenty.” You might have plenty of sugar, but you can’t make use of them.
4. Polyphagia can aggravate diabetes
The problem with caving into constant hunger is that it can aggravate diabetes in a number of ways.
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