Women with more ghrelin — the hunger hormone — actually eat less each day, which seems surprising but was observed in this group.

Women with more of the hunger hormone ghrelin tend to burn fewer calories at rest and after eating, even when you account for their body size and insulin levels.

The hunger hormone ghrelin doesn’t seem to affect how the body burns fat vs. carbs after eating, how active someone is, how fit they are, or their eating habits like restraint or hunger feelings.

People with more belly fat and metabolic issues tend to have lower levels of a hunger hormone called ghrelin, which is linked to higher fat in the liver, more leptin (a fullness hormone), and higher blood pressure.

Even though undernourished older women have more of the hunger hormone in their blood, they still don’t eat more—so high hunger signals don’t always make people eat.

After losing weight, people on very low-carb diets have higher levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin than those on high-carb diets, which might make them feel hungrier.