What foods can you actually bring yourself to eat while on Adderall?

[NowIKnowWhy!]

I used to be a total foodie and enjoy everything about a good meal. Now, I just couldn't care less.

I'm curious about what food actually seems good to people? i think that the only thing I want to eat on Adderall is rice pudding!

[xraylady33]

Unfortunately the worst side affect of Adderall is loss of appetite. You really need to try to eat more than sugar.

My serious craving.........nothing....but bananna's seem to be a pleaser. I feel better when i eat protien, so I force myself, three times a day, even if it is a bite or two. I have little or no appetite, and started this medicine in July.

[Captain Sanity]

I still like to eat just as much, just not as much volume. Much more worrying is that I don't feel the need to drink, so I have to watch out for that.

[equazcion]

If I do get hungry while on Adderall I tend to crave things that will quickly boost my blood sugar without having to eat a lot of it. Cake, chocolate bars, etc all will seem exceptionally tempting. I think it's because of the general lack of food in my system during a day when I'm on Adderall, so my body wants the quick fix of a good sugar rush. Or it could be that Adderall brings such a "numbness" that ordinary food just won't cut it, and you need a whole lot more flavor to actually get any enjoyment out of food.

Funny how I'm not generally like that without Adderall. Sweets were never all that enticing to me. I'd normally rather have some good real food of substance (red meat especially). It's hard to find real food attractive on Adderall though; it's turned me into a cake person. But, even though those are the things I crave when I do get hungry, I still don't actually get hungry all that often with Adderall in my system.

Though I do try to force myself as much as possible to stick to regular meals. As xraylady33 points out, you'll feel better if you do.

[MECMR]

I am loving peanut butter, which is healthy in small quantities, but not as my only meal!

Since I have less appetite, and more ability to think through my decisions, I am finding it easier to go for healthy things like the salad bar. Even if I don't finish it all, at least I got some veggies in.

I have lost between 15 and 20 pounds since going on Adderall, and it's a good thing for me. I no longer search for carbs, and I can get myself to eat a lot more veggies at all times. Pizza, though, that is still my downfall....

[NowIKnowWhy!]

Ha, I hear you when you say that you still eat pizza! I think that it is funny how certain foods are just sooooo good to a person, that not even adderall can bring the food craving down! Like, I have always loved Nutella, and even Adderall can't make me not want Nutella if I see a jar in front of me.

I am just finding the loss of appetite thing to be such a mind trip. Food was always a major part of my definition of self. I feel like I don't know myself anymore. The concept of having to force myself to eat is so foreign, that I just gave in to it at first. I've been on adderall for just a couple of months and I've lost 25 lbs!

I think too, that I basically embraced the loss of apetite, since, as a woman, of course I was loving getting skinny....! So, I didn't really try to figure out techniques to get myself to want to eat. Now, I've had to admit that I've been really loopy and crazy acting, since I was basically starving. I thought maybe the meds were to blame for my behavior, but my husband made me realize that it was because I wasn't eating anything (or sleeping, but that's a matter for a different post....).

So, now I am trying to eat, and I find it really hard, especially after a lifetime of trying to diet and make myself not want to eat.

Any ideas??? As we've all pointed out, sugar sure seems yummy, but obviously I can't just eat ice cream, Nutella and rice pudding for the rest of my life. (oh, wouldn't that be awesome??).

I know what I *should* be doing (protein, etc.) but I just don't know HOW. I just do not want to put anything into my mouth that is substantial.

I think a lot of it is because of the actual state of my mouth itself. The dryness, for one, makes me not want to eat things like bread that will just feel like a gummy lump in my mouth. Also, I have that anoying thing some Adderall people get, of contantly rubbing my tougue around my mouth and teeth. Because of this, the inside of my mouth is a bit sensitive and raw, so I just have no desire to eat anything intense in texture or flavor that will iritate it furhter. Hence the rice pudding.

Sigh. Never thought I would have this problem, I can tell you that....

[equazcion]

Originally Posted by NowIKnowWhy!

Any ideas???

One word: Nutri-Grain bars.

Okay that might be three words. But, I've found Nutri-Grain bars to be very compatible with Adderall, as they don't require much actual eating, and one or two bars per meal gives you pretty much everything you need nutrition-wise.

Another thing you can do is time your dose so that the only meal you really end up skipping is lunch. Eat a big breakfast before your dose, then eat dinner after it wears off at night.

A note of caution if you go the meal-replacement route (ie. bars or shakes): Some people become somewhat lactose intolerant from Adderall (I'm one of them). And as luck would have it, many of those protien bars and shakes are made of concentrated whey protien, meaning, heavy concentrated loads of lactose. I myself became deathly ill once from an Adderall + protien shake experience. Nutri-Grain bars are a safe choice, since they don't contain much if any milk.

[Colin]

I found on dexedrine i didnt get the usual hunger pains.

hwoever i found I could eat prettymuch the same as before i juat had to learn that I could eat it without my tummy screaming for it !

[roly poly]

My eating habits really haven't changed since I've been on Adderall. I've always enjoyed most foods and that hasn't changed.

[LittlePrincess]

I'm the same way, especially since increasing my dose. I get that feeling where I can tell my body is hungry but I have no appetite. It is so frustrating.

I can usually eat a cup of yogurt, a handful or two of cereal, and maybe some cheese and crackers. But if I can't eat anything, I'll at least try to drink some milk or juice.

[Colin]

oh also i find an aperetif works quite well for me sometimes, usualy becuase ive got myself something to eat then im so tired my apetite seems to have gone, I seem to have found "Port" is ideal, red wine is good, but it seems a waste to have one glass, and I end up drinking the whole bottle, at least with port it keeps for ages.

obvioulsy drinking mid day might be a problem. i dont think i ever had to try it on dexedrine. i think i lost 2 stones, and my docotr warned me if I lost any more weight hed take me off the tablets.

I just changed from my tummy telling me when to eat to using my brain to simply eat at proper meal times, even though i didnt feel hungry like normal the food still went down, and was no discomfort, and i found a lovly french resuarant wich was such delightfull food.

if losing weight is a problem, then there are also those enregy drinks, i find those very refreshing.

[nurse708]

I have been on Adderall for a little over a month and most days I have to force myself to eat something. On the days that I work (12 noon till 10 pm) I eat a lot of salads. I also will eat a lot of Kashi bars and crackers. I can drink one of those Campbell's Soup At Hand and eat a few crackers with some slices of sharp cheddar cheese and be set for hours. Before Adderall that would have just been an appetizer and now it's a full meal!

I have noticed that I do not crave sweets like I did before. Actually I don't really crave anything at all and at times nothing seems appetizing which drives my husband insane cause I can never decide on something for dinner!

[Legendofmetal77]

It's been 7 years since I've had adderall. First day back on it,and it feels like yesterday. Then having to deal with the issue of eating (agian) yeah it's really hard for me to even crave anything. I am a 25 y/o male and only 130lbs so I REALLY have to figure out how to solve this problem this time around. What I intend to do now. is just eat small portion foods that dont take long to make. Today my stomach decided on Microwave White Castle Burgers.
They only take 1 min in the microwave and are very small, but very filling. I use to eat these small BBQ rib sandwhiches that also only took 1 min in the microwave but my local grocery store no longer carries them =(

[PedroDaGr8]

For me the hunger supression started to die down some just recently. Which isn't bad. I am still able to control what I eat if I need to, but I don't feel like not eatting.

[arrested_truth]

I have a hard time getting myself to eat before 6pm, which is the time I normally eat my biggest meals, after 6pm (horrible I know but everything in my daily routine seems screwed up anyway) but I find it easy to eat fruits, bananas, shredded cheese, string cheese, mixed nuts, PIZZA of course, chicken/vegetable eggrolls (very tasty even when not hungry at all), or goldfish crackers. When I get weak or dizzy during the day for needing to eat, eating a whole bunch of goldfish crackers is probably the easiest, small and salty is what catches my flair for food.