6 Potential Reasons You’re Always Hungry and Exhausted

While it's normal to occasionally feel ravenous or exhausted (or both), chronic fatigue coupled with hunger that lasts for days or months on end is a cause for concern. These persistent symptoms may interfere with your day-to-day life — and potentially point to an underlying health condition.

Chronic fatigue can happen for several different reasons, including low blood count or thyroid hormone levels, according to Cleveland Clinic. It could also be a symptom of depression or sleep apnea, or a side effect of medication, according to Cleveland Clinic, such as beta-blockers, certain painkillers, or anticonvulsants.

Constant hunger, too, has many potential causes. According to MedlinePlus, these include anxiety, low blood sugar, thyroid problems, and certain medications, including corticosteroids and tricyclic antidepressants.

If you’ve tried to remedy hunger and fatigue through diet and lifestyle changes, such as improving sleep hygiene and eating healthier, reach out to your doctor. They can carry out a full medical checkup and recommend tests to diagnose or rule out underlying illness.

In the meantime, below are some potential reasons you may feel chronically hungry and fatigued, plus next steps to help rebalance your appetite and energy levels.

1. Your Diet Is Lacking Nutrients

There’s truth to the popular phrase “food is fuel.” Nutrients are essential for the body to function, and a ‌lack‌ of certain nutrients may cause fatigue. Indeed, hunger and fatigue are both side effects of malnutrition, according to the National Health Service.

When you eat an unbalanced diet or too few calories, you can miss out on essential nutrients for your brain, heart, and other organs. You don’t have to be underweight to be malnourished, according to Cleveland Clinic.

While nutritional needs vary depending on factors such as your sex, age, weight, and activity level, a nutritious diet should include whole foods like fruit, vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats, and lean protein, according to Cleveland Clinic. In addition, limit highly processed foods, which are typically high in calories but low in nutrients.

‌A dietitian can work with you to understand your dietary needs and craft a plan to improve your nutritional intake.

2. You're Not Getting Enough Sleep

Poor sleep is an obvious cause of fatigue. What can be less obvious, though, are the causes of poor sleep, which include excessive alcohol or caffeine intake and poor sleep hygiene. It can also be a sign of medical conditions such as anxiety disorder, chronic fatigue syndrome, kidney disease, pregnancy, or heart disease, according to Mayo Clinic.

Insomnia is another possibility, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. If you struggle to fall asleep or stay asleep at least three nights a week, you may have this condition.

Not getting enough sleep can also affect your appetite. Here's why: Sleep helps regulate ghrelin, an appetite-stimulating hormone, and leptin, an appetite-suppressing hormone, according to the Sleep Foundation. When you don’t get enough sleep, ghrelin levels rise and leptin levels drop, causing you to feel hungrier.

‌If a lack of sleep is making it difficult to function day to day, consult your doctor to determine why you're having trouble sleeping. If they believe you may have a sleep disorder, they may refer you to a specialist for further diagnostic testing.

3. You Need More Exercise

Consistent physical activity can have a direct link to energy levels, according to Mayo Clinic. That’s because exercise helps improve circulation, so your body can more effectively deliver oxygen and nutrients to various cells.

Exercise also causes your body to make more mitochondria (the powerhouses of all cells), according to Harvard Health Publishing. Having more mitochondria increases your body's energy supply, meaning you'll feel more energized, too.

Moreover, exercise helps support better sleep, according to Mayo Clinic. Just be careful not to work out too close to bedtime.

Some research also suggests regular physical activity may help suppress appetite, according to a review published in 2024 in Physiological Reports. One theory as to why is that exercise may help modulate hormones, such as ghrelin and glucagon-like peptide 1 (a hormone that signals satiety, slows digestion, and helps regulate blood sugar).

‌The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that most people aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity every week, along with at least two days of strength training. Talk to a doctor before starting an exercise program if you have an underlying health condition, such as heart disease, or are new to fitness.

4. You Have Diabetes

Diabetes is a metabolic disorder that affects how your body uses digested food for energy, according to the CDC. Hunger and fatigue are symptoms of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, according to Diabetes UK. This is because the body does not produce enough insulin, which is needed to bring glucose to cells to use it as energy.

A doctor can perform a blood test, such as a fasting plasma glucose test, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, to screen for type 1 or type 2 diabetes. If you receive a diabetes diagnosis from a primary care physician, they may refer you to a specialist, such as an endocrinologist, for treatment.

5. You Have a Mental Health Condition

Mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety can lead to changes in your sleep and eating patterns, according to the CDC. Some people sleep more than usual but still feel fatigued, while others experience sleep difficulties, including insomnia. Likewise, while some people with anxiety or depression lose their appetite, others feel hungrier.

If you think you may have a mental health issue, ‌talk with your primary care doctor. They may provide a mental health screening test and recommend treatments such as medication and counseling. They may also refer you to a therapist or psychiatrist who can help you work through difficult mental health concerns in a safe and positive environment.

6. You're Taking a Certain Medication

As mentioned, some medications can cause an uptick in appetite, according to the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York. And many medications — including over-the-counter cold and allergy medications as well as certain prescribed medications, such as steroids, some antidepressants, and antipsychotics — have a side effect of drowsiness or fatigue, as well, according to AARP.

‌In some cases, such as with over-the-counter medications, simply stopping the medication may be a viable solution. For prescription medications, reach out to your doctor — you may be able to address side effects by adjusting the dosage, taking it at a different time, or trying a different medication.