Do naturally thin people actually think different?

aniracace · January 2018

Is it true that a naturally thin person and an overweight person thinks differently about food? If so, what's the difference?

kazminchu · January 2018

They must do. I've had (naturally slim) people tell me they "forgot to eat" meals. I would forget to breathe before I forget to eat.

cmriverside · January 2018

Which one are you and what do you think about food?

quiksylver296 · January 2018

megs_1985 · January 2018

I have a “naturally” thin friend and she eats more sweets then I do though I think she’s better about portion control over all and not overdoing it regularly. She eats out and gets fried foods, sweets, etc all the time but she eats much more sparsely at home.

pinuplove · January 2018

My husband forgets to eat, and he's not 'naturally thin.' Just absent-minded and able to ignore hunger pangs

There have been many discussions here over the years along these same lines. 'Naturally thin' isn't something that can be quantified. You don't know their activity level, nor do you follow them around all day counting what they consume (I hope!) They may simply be more active and/or eat less than you imagine.

Do some people get more enjoyment out of food than others? Certainly. Does that mean those who enjoy food to a greater degree are destined to be fat? Certainly not.

kristen8000 · January 2018

There is no such thing as "naturally thin".

AliceDark · January 2018

That assumes that all "overweight" people think about food in the same way, which I think we would all agree isn't true. Everyone is an individual, and everyone has their own thoughts, issues and approaches they need to work through. Some people may have preferences or habits that make it easier for them to maintain their weight, and you can learn to use those habits to your advantage. Other people put in a lot of work to maintain theirs, and it's a little unfair not to give them credit for their hard work.

AllOutof_Bubblegum · January 2018

I absolutely do think this is true. I have a friend who is "naturally thin" and I was always so jealous of her. I couldn't figure out why she was so thin, even though she had an absolutely terrible diet (some days literally nothing but Hot Cheetos and beer, I kid you not)

We spent an afternoon one day lounging on the couch watching a movie, and I brought out a big chocolate bar to share. She had two pieces, and by the end of the movie, the bar was gone. I had mindlessly eaten the rest of it myself. It was a really interesting insight into our differing satiety levels. Some people naturally have a stronger "enough" signal that goes off when eating. She does, I clearly don't. Lol.

cwolfman13 · January 2018

I was always "naturally lean" until I started sitting behind a desk and my activity plummeted and I started drinking a lot of caffeinated soda. I never really had any thoughts about food...it was just food...pretty much breakfast, lunch, and dinner and maybe an afternoon snack.

I never used food as any kind of coping mechanism for stress or anxiety or sadness, etc. I've never had any particular issues with bingeing or anything like that. I'd occasionally over eat, but it was generally an occasion like a holiday or party or something...not any kind of regular occurrence.

I think "naturally lean" people also have a reasonable amount of activity in their lives whether that includes deliberate exercise or not...I don't think they really have any particular thoughts about food because it's not something they dwell on...I also don't think overweight people necessarily have any particular thoughts about food...like I said, I didn't...my activity just plummeted when I took a desk job.

Lounmoun · January 2018

I don't think there are naturally thin people. Anyone can gain weight if they eat or drink enough calories.
Just like overweight people don't think the same, thin people don't all think the same.

There are people who are good at maintaining a certain weight for years by eating lower calorie foods most of the time. It might be a taste preference or a choice to eat lighter.
There are people who eat less. It might be due to stress/anxiety, illness or medication, low money, someone else portioning their food, habit or culture.
There are people who are fairly active and thus compensate for higher calorie foods or large portions that they enjoy.

Thought doesn't have much to do with some of those things. If conditions change those thin people could gain weight.

netitheyeti · January 2018

My boyfriend is skinny, he's almost a foot taller than me and weighs less than I do (he's close to underweight)... He often either forgets or can't be bothered getting food until like 7pm and then just has a big dinner, though he'll occasionally snack on sweets or crackers... I don't know how he manages, I'd be cranky and have a hunger headache halfway through the day
His only exercise is a short walk to the bus station and back, he has a desk job and spends his free time playing videogames/doing sedentary stuff - he hates exercise

mom23mangos · January 2018

I would call myself "naturally lean" as I've never been outside of the low to mid BMI range and for most of my life with no effort or thought. I don't really get hunger signals. I could go all day without eating if I was busy enough. I started adding some pounds with a desk job and boredom eating. I'm also a stress non-eater. As much as people will say it's not genetic, I think to a certain extent it is. My mom was the exact same way. Of course age and inactivity caught up with her too.

Need2Exerc1se · January 2018

5738_Cassiel wrote: »

Is it true that a naturally thin person and an overweight person thinks differently about food? If so, what's the difference?

Yes. But everyone that is thin is not naturally thin. Many work at it just like people losing weight do, they simply do it proactively.

JMcGee2018 · January 2018

From my experience, they sometimes forget to eat (what!?!) and then have this strange ability to actual STOP eating when they are full. Like they will be eating something delicious, and then all of the sudden say "I'm full" and put the fork down. It's madness!

HoneyBadger302 · January 2018

Much like @cwolfman13 I was always "naturally thin" - right up until I got the "professional" job that had me working long hours and sitting on my butt the vast majority of the day. Prior to that, I never really struggled with my weight - a few pounds here and there, but a little calorie counting and it would go away.

After the majority of my days became "sedentary" I piled on a fair bit of weight.

I haven't thought about food any differently before or after. If anything, I was just never worried about it when I was "thin" but it was REALLY obvious that my weight had to do with my activity levels over the course of a day as opposed to my eating habits.

It became pretty obvious that unless I wanted to start eating like a bird (and not care about my physical abilities to do things, compete in my sport, or just in general feel good about what my body could do), that I would just have to make fitness a priority, just like work. It would have to be THAT important to me, regardless of whether I "felt like it" or not.

So, that's where I'm at. Putting in some serious gym sessions, and eventually my body will catch back up, but it's going to take some time. I still have to watch food more than I did then, because of sitting around all day...but dang it, I like to eat, so the workouts at least allow me to consume some "real meals."

CattOfTheGarage · January 2018

All the "naturally thin" people I know (my husband and all my in-laws) genuinely don't want food if they're not hungry. That's the main difference I notice.

They also get antsy when they have eaten a lot, and want to get up and go for a long walk or something. It's not necessarily the same day, might be the following day, but it happens. They also eat less on following days.

It's not a difference in how they and I *think*. They barely think about it at all. It's a difference in feelings and reactions.

lulalacroix · January 2018

Two of my best friends have been very thin their entire lives, they are both in their fifties. Both eat about one meal a day. Neither cook or plan events around food. They don't eat when emotional or stressed. And I've never seen either of them eat a lot, although one does sleep binge at times. Neither exercises, but both keep constantly busy.

Then there's me. Currently about 30 pounds overweight. I start thinking about food when I wake. I plan meals, events around meals, and even participate in cooking contests. I care what goes into my body and exercise.

This is just my +1 and probably means nothing, but I do find it interesting.

steveko89 · January 2018

I think it's more apt to say "someone who's never been overweight thinks differently than someone who is or has been overweight".

I also think "naturally thin" is an unproductive and unnecessary label. As others have stated, you have no idea how any given person thinks about food, nutrition, exercise nor how much effort and thought they dedicate to those pursuits. Additionally, unless you've known a person for the entirety of their life, you don't know that they haven't needed to lose or possibly even gain weight to get to the perceived ideal/healthy weight where they are now and the requisite mental effects those journeys have had.

DX2JX2 · January 2018

Yes - naturally thin people don't tend to care about food as anything but nourishment. There's zero emotional attachment to it.

Do naturally thin people actually think different?

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