Interesting reading from Cath...

[Guest guest]

I am sure that Cath won't mind me posting this here... she posted it on Ozband earlier this morning, and it is probably heading this way anyway.

Thanks Cath, this is interesting in light of what Ghyll posted last week.

Mel

Original page:http://www.webmd. com/content/ Article/127/ 116572.htm------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -Protein Triggers Weight Loss HormoneHigh-Protein Foods Sate Hunger Best – by Setting OffAntiobesity Hormone By DeNoonWebMD Medical News Reviewed By Louise Chang, MDon Tuesday, September 05, 2006Sept. 5, 2006 -- Eating protein triggers a naturalweight-loss hormone, British researchers say.When released in the gut, the hormone known as PYYreduces hunger. And high-protein foods set off PYYbetter than other foods, according to L.Batterham, MD, of University College London, andcolleagues.Recent studies suggest PYY is part of the solution toobesityobesity. Compared with a normal-weight person,for example, an obese person has to eat twice as manycalories to trigger PYY."We've now found that increasing the protein contentof the diet augments the body's own PYY, helping toreduce hunger and aid weight lossweight loss,"Batterham says, in a news release.If this sounds like the Atkins Diet, Batterham andcolleagues say it's not. They note that many people onthe Atkins Diet eat a lot of saturated fat as well asa lot of protein.Obesity, Men, and MiceIs PYY really the key to obesity? Batterham's teamfirst looked at what kind of food best satisfieshunger. They studied nine obese men and 10normal-weight men. After brief fasts, the men atedifferent meals. Each of the meals -- a high-proteinmeal, a high-fat meal, and a high-carbohydrate meal --had the same number of calories.All the men said the high-protein meal best satisfiedtheir hunger. Interestingly, the normal-weight menfound the high-fat meal more satisfying than thehigh-carb meal, while the obese men did not.Measurements showed the high-protein meal triggeredthe most PYY in all of the men. In the normal-weightmen -- but not the obese men -- the high-fat mealtriggered more PYY than the high-carb meal.Batterham's team genetically engineered a mouse strainthat did not have the PYY gene. These mice ate hugeamounts of food, and quickly became obese.Normally, obese mice fed a high-protein diet will eatless and lose weight. But a high-protein diet didn'thelp the PYY-defective mice lose weight -- unless theyalso got PYY treatments.Hunters vs. FarmersWhy does protein trigger PYY and satisfy hunger sowell? It's not entirely clear. But Batterham andcolleagues suggest we blame our ancestors.The prehistoric humans whose genes we inherit had adifferent diet than we do. They got 19% to 35% oftheir energy from protein and 22% to 40% from carbs.Our modern diet gets 49% of its energy from carbs andonly 16% protein."One potential weight loss strategy is therefore toincrease the satiating power of the diet and promoteweight loss through the addition of dietary protein --harnessing our own satiety system," Batterham says."Such a diet is perhaps more typical to that of ourhunter-gatherer ancestors."The findings appear in the September issue of thejournal Cell Metabolism.------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -SOURCES: Batterham, R. Cell Metabolism, September2006; vol 4: pp. 223-233. News release, Cell Press.FREE Weight Control NewsletterGet tips, recipes, andinspiration. Email: Privacy Policy------------ --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -© 2006 WebMD Inc. All rights reserved.