Thursday, July 9, 2009

Summertime and Loss of Appetite

I don't know how many of you experience this, but I've noticed in my years on this globe that when hot weather rolls around I lose my appetite - quite distressing for someone in my field. Unfortunately for most of us the reverse is true in winter. How cruel of a joke is that? Stay bundled up all winter eating like a bear and hibernating to boot, then when the cold finally breaks and we can shed those layers of clothing we may not want to - at least not in public. If it was the other way around, eating in the summer and losing our appetite in the winter, we'd be all set when it was time to go to the pool! Unfortunately it's not all a matter of choice. Mother Nature's finger prints are all over this!

In hot weather the body has to work to keep cool. All of the body's processes produce heat and digestion is no exception. When we eat the body must process the food which produces heat. To moderate the production of heat and maintain body temperature, the body suppresses appetite during hotter weather. Ignore this cue from your body and you'll wind up dripping sweat on your plate. The opposite is true during the winter. Take the bear for example. It's not that he carries around a calendar and when October rolls around he starts stocking up for the winter months. When the weather gets cooler, his body signals that it's time to start eating because it doesn't have to work to stay cool and soon will need fuel to stay warm. We're no different from the old bear.

I've always found during the summer months I shy away from a big steak which is usually one of my favorite things on which to dine, opting instead for lighter options such as fish and shellfish. Maybe that's why everyone I see is going to the beach - for the fish. Then again it's probably for the margaritas... So as I sit here typing on my computer in Hotlanta, if you're sitting on a beach somewhere eating crab claws and quaffing copious amounts of beer and margaritas, raise a toast to me and order another round!

I'll be here when it cools off and you come back to reality, waiting with open arms and a steak on the barbie!