When our bodies sense that we’re not eating enough to meet our daily energy requirements, we start throttling things down. The body struggles mightily to balance its energy budget so that expenditure doesn’t exceed intake. Our thyroid gland, the body’s master controller of metabolic rate, reduces the amount of thyroid hormone produced, which is like taking your foot off the gas pedal. Our cells slow down, which lowers BMR and daily energy expenditure. At the same time, the hormones and brain circuitry that control hunger increase our drive for food. We become ravenous, fixated on food as our
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