5 Appetite Suppressing Foods To Help You Eat Less

It seems almost inevitable these days that we all eventually end up on a mission to improve our health. Whether it be to lose weight, gain muscle, or just stay fit and not have to worry about common health issues that can crop up. A fortune is spent advertising supplements, diet programmes, fitness equipment and the “latest new, best method” to be healthier.

There are plenty of people looking for the easy route, the quick fix. Some pill or shake that will give them the results they desire. But getting healthy and staying healthy is hard work and takes time and commitment. Achieving your health goal is more of a matter of adopting an alternative lifestyle as opposed to something that you do for a month, then your good to go.

Managing to stay a healthy weight is a key factor in living that healthier life.

Processed and junk food is doing us so much harm. Between the modern lifestyle, which is mostly sedentary, and junk food, we have dug quite a hole for ourselves. Poor eating habits have left many of us completely out of tune with our satiety signals.

Lucky for us there are a few things we can eat or drink that will help to curb our appetite and potentially reduce the amount of food we’re consuming. Most of it is nothing fancy, and I’m sure you have most of these things at home. Here are five to get you started:

1. Coffee: Now, most people have probably experienced this or at least heard about its appetite-suppressing effect. For a long time, people thought it was the caffeine that was causing this effect. Interestingly enough, it is not, decaf has the same effect because of the satiety hormone PPY.

A clinical trial (Coffee, hunger, and peptide YY; Greenberg JA, et al) reports that “our randomized human trial showed that decaffeinated coffee can acutely decrease hunger and increase the satiety hormone PYY.” When this clinical trial was finished, the researchers were surprised at the results, but they also noted that more studies need to be conducted to figure out the exact mechanism.

Remember, not all of us do well with coffee and drinking coffee after lunchtime can affect your sleep so don’t over do this one!

2. Chicken and fish: Add more protein to your diet. Recently studies were completed at Purdue to show the effect of a high protein diet. They sought to show the satisfying nature of lean protein. What they found was that participants who took in about 30% of their calories from lean protein felt fuller for longer. The trick is choosing the right protein source. A few recommendations would be lean poultry, eggs, and legumes which are beans and lentils.

3. Whole grains and fibre rich foods: Try and get enough fibre in your diet. A randomized study called Dietary fiber and weight regulation found that when participants ate an extra 14 grams of fiber daily, they decreased their calorie intake by up to 10%. The reason for this is fibre stretches the stomach causing it to release fullness hormones.

Aside from keeping you feeling fuller longer, opting for a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, and seeds promotes your overall health. Many of these foods also contain beneficial nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

4. Stay hydrated and drink plenty of water: Having a large glass of water before your meal will make you feel fuller sooner, so you end up eating less. For this tip to work, try to drink the water as close to the meal as possible. Plus, the added hydration is always beneficial since many people don’t stay adequately hydrated during the day.

Another way to achieve this effect is by starting your meal with soup. In a paper published back in 2007 by the journal, Appetite researchers were able to show that eating a bowl of soup immediately before a meal decreased hunger and reduced total calorie intake. On average, it was about 100 calories per meal.

5. Spices: If you can tolerate it try adding some more spice to your meal. A recent meta-analysis by Purdue University examined the effects of capsaicin, found in hot peppers, and capsiate, found in sweet peppers. It found these compounds may help decrease hunger and increase feelings of fullness. Although this meta-analysis only included a few studies, it’s still something to consider.