Slow Food

Chew More, Eat Less?

After watching 16 lean and 14 obese men eat breakfast, researchers noted that the lean men took fewer bites than the obese men (4 bites vs. 5 bites per minute) and that the lean men chewed more per bite (21 vs. 17 times).

Then the scientists asked all the men to eat as much food as they wanted, and to chew each bite either 15 or 40 times. Whether lean or obese, the men consumed 12% fewer calories after 40 chews per bite than after 15 chews. What's more, roughly an hour after finishing a 670 calorie meal, blood levels of ghrelin (a hormone that stimulates appetite) were lower after 40 chews per bite than after 15 chews. This information can be found in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, in Nutrition Metabolism, and Appetite.

In another study, researchers fed 14 obese men and women with pre-diabetes a breakfast of orange juice and cream of wheat either alone or with 225 calories of whole almonds (33 nuts), 225 calories of almond butter (2-1/4 tablespoons), or 190 calories of almond oil (1-1/2 tablespoons). The participants left more full for the rest of the day after eating the whole almonds than after eating the oil or butter (or the almond-free meal). A third study found that students ate 40% fewer calories when offered pistachios in the shell than when they got shelled pistachios (125 calories vs. 210).

The lesson from this is clear…if a person takes twice as long to eat by chewing longer and eating foods that require more chewing, the weight loss resulting from that change alone can be over 20 pounds a year.

Here is a sample day's worth of food to help you chew more and eat less…

BREAKFAST- Start with a whole orange on the side of a bowl of whole grain oatmeal with added fat-free milk. Add a sprinkling of pecans and dried apricots and cranberries on top.

LUNCH and AFTERNOON SNACK- Enjoy a generous serving of greens plus apple slices, grapes and an ounce of cheese, 4 tablespoons of walnuts, and vinaigrette. Add a small whole grain roll. Snack on hummus and green peppers (or other veggies) with whole grain crackers.

DINNER and EVENING SNACK- Have stir-fried veggies with sliced chicken over brown rice with a side of edemame. A cup of protein-rich, fat-free plain Greek yogurt garnished with blueberries, sliced banana, and a sprinkle of granola makes a perfect snack.