Try not to eat between breakfast and the following day's breakfast. You'll be shocked at how difficult this is. Our ancestors went for days without eating; there were not refrigerators, or even agriculture, for most of humanity's existence, so we either had fresh food and ate, or we starved.
Because of this eating/starving cycle, a symbiosis formed, between us and the bacteria that live in us. Think of these bacteria as an extremely blue collar workforce; it's hard work, but you get the job done and then you die. When times are good the populations grow up, but they always stay in balance.
Fast forward to today, and most of us have abundant food available anytime of the day, and for many of us, this food contains such cheaply available calories (glucose, fructose, etc.) that we have created a welfare state for bacteria. Just like with a human welfare state, it's no longer the bacteria that serve the most important purpose that thrive, it's the bacteria that reproduce at the fastest rate, given the available energy medium. As a result, our immune systems are partially tasked with destroying bacteria that have no business existing in our bodies in such high numbers. This wreaks havoc on our health more than any other thing we do.
There are various schools of thought when it comes to fasting, but, as a general principle, fasting, to some degree, on a regular basis, creates a biome inside of you that more closely represents how we naturally existed before the advent of french fries and corn bread.
None of this is medical advice and I am not a medical professional.
That's good, have you noticed a difference between how do you feel when you eat more and steadily verses on those times when you skip an extra meal?
Yeah, if I eat earlier than normal, I get hungrier than normal and usually want to eat more.
Fruit however doesn't have the same impact. Because I tend to eat fruit alone and whole where possible, it seems to be more filling. It lasts a while, but if I have toast, muffins, or any kind of bread I find I am hungry before a couple hours and it's actually noticeable.
Meat, nuts, cheese and fruit are the only things I find are good for snacking without a crash, but also moderation.
Same here; if I have toast or any kind of junk carb at lunch, I will be starving within a couple hours, whereas I can go without eating lunch any day and not feel like I'm starving even at dinner time.
Yeah, it's weird. The only exception is if I have a hearty selection of good crackers (seeds, cranberries,etc) and mix in cheese and meat and veggies etc. Most bread though or sweets like cookies is just a trap. I still treat myself to them from time to time, but it's always the same - a bit of hunger and extra eating to compensate.
I prefer chocolate for my treats. Good chocolate goes a long way when you are not eating much. You can have a small piece of good chocolate and go like an extra hour or two longer before you need to eat a meal