How to feel full on fewer calories --- weight loss

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" How to feel full on fewer calories... "

If you've been trying to lose weight for some time, chances are

you're fed up feeling hungry. If so, researchers from Tufts

University have some extremely simple (but highly effective)

advice you can use to feel full on fewer calories.

In their review of several weight loss studies, the team

discovered that simply adding an extra 14 grams of fiber to your

diet each day will lead to a 10% reduction in calorie intake.

In less than four months, this simple strategy alone could lead

to over four pounds of extra weight loss. This might not sound

like much. But combined with an effective diet and training

program, it can make losing weight faster and easier.

There are two types of dietary fiber - insoluble and soluble.

* Insoluble fiber does not dissolve in water and travels through

the small intestines quickly. The skins of many fruits and

vegetables are considered insoluble.

* Soluble fiber breaks down as it passes through your digestive

system. It forms a gel that helps to stabilize your blood

sugar levels. You'll find soluble fiber in oats, beans, and

many fruits and vegetables.

One good source of soluble fiber is the humble apple. A typical

apple provides around 80 calories, with most of those coming from

carbohydrate. Each apple also contains approximately 5 grams of

fiber.

The flesh of the apple - which is the white bit - contains a

soluble fiber known as pectin. In much the same way that pectin

thickens strawberry jam, it also bulks up in your stomach. This

has the effect of making you feel fuller.

Pectin can also slow the release of sugar into your blood. Stable

blood sugar levels, rather than the highs and lows associated

with certain foods, also help to keep hunger under control.

What's more, when you eat the skin of the apple, you're getting

insoluble fiber. This can help prevent the " backed up " feeling

many people suffer from on a restricted-calorie diet.

Unfortunately, apples aren't a great source of vitamins or

minerals, mainly because 25% of their volume is air. Their skin,

however, is rich in an antioxidant known as quercetin. Not only

has quercetin been linked with fewer fatal heart attacks, it can

also dramatically reduce your risk of lung cancer.

Reference

Howarth, N.C., Saltzman, E., & , S.B. (2001). Dietary

fiber and weight regulation. Nutrition Reviews, 59, 129-139

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Carol