Advice to eat slowly at meal-time may have been wise. A study suggests that shoveling down your food blocks the body's natural appetite-control process.
Advice to eat slowly at meal-time may have been wise. A study suggests that shoveling down your food blocks the body's natural appetite-control process.
Past studies has supported the notion that eating fast can lead to food overconsumption and obesity. Some previous research has also found that when people take time to chew their food thoroughly and enjoy a meal, they tend to eat fewer calories than when they have the same meal at an eat-and-run pace.
Researchers in United Kingdom studied 17 healthy adults to determine whether eating a small meal at varying speed elicits different postprandial gut hormone responses. The participants ate a generous portion of ice cream under two different conditions: in one, they ate the treat in two servings over 5 minutes; in the other, they ate it in small servings over 30 minutes. The researchers measured the blood levels of gut hormones ghrelin (which stimulates appetite) and the appetite suppressing peptide YY and glucagon-like peptide-1 following the meal. Each participant was also scored on a visual analog scale for the subjective feelings of hunger and fullness throughout each session.
It was found that when the men ate slowly, they showed higher blood levels of two hormones - peptide YY (PYY) and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) - for roughly three hours after the meal. However, the groups' feelings of fullness and hunger did not seem to differ. Both PYY and GLP-1 are released from the digestive tract as a fullness signal to the brain, curbing appetite and calorie intake.
The researchers concluded that the relationship between speed eating and overeating shows that the rate at which someone eats may impact the neuroendocrine regulation of gut hormones that signal the brain to stop eating.
The findings are particularly relevant in a time when many people are relying on fast food and regularly eating on the run. Slowing down at meal time could aid appetite control, and ultimately weight control.
Past studies has supported the notion that eating fast can lead to food overconsumption and obesity. Some previous research has also found that when people take time to chew their food thoroughly and enjoy a meal, they tend to eat fewer calories than when they have the same meal at an eat-and-run pace.
Researchers in United Kingdom studied 17 healthy adults to determine whether eating a small meal at varying speed elicits different postprandial gut hormone responses. The participants ate a generous portion of ice cream under two different conditions: in one, they ate the treat in two servings over 5 minutes; in the other, they ate it in small servings over 30 minutes. The researchers measured the blood levels of gut hormones ghrelin (which stimulates appetite) and the appetite suppressing peptide YY and glucagon-like peptide-1 following the meal. Each participant was also scored on a visual analog scale for the subjective feelings of hunger and fullness throughout each session.
It was found that when the men ate slowly, they showed higher blood levels of two hormones - peptide YY (PYY) and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) - for roughly three hours after the meal. However, the groups' feelings of fullness and hunger did not seem to differ. Both PYY and GLP-1 are released from the digestive tract as a fullness signal to the brain, curbing appetite and calorie intake.
The researchers concluded that the relationship between speed eating and overeating shows that the rate at which someone eats may impact the neuroendocrine regulation of gut hormones that signal the brain to stop eating.
The findings are particularly relevant in a time when many people are relying on fast food and regularly eating on the run. Slowing down at meal time could aid appetite control, and ultimately weight control.
COMMENT
DoctorNDTV is the one stop site for all your health needs providing the most credible health information, health news and tips with expert advice on healthy living, diet plans, informative videos etc. You can get the most relevant and accurate info you need about health problems like diabetes, cancer, pregnancy, HIV and AIDS, weight loss and many other lifestyle diseases. We have a panel of over 350 experts who help us develop content by giving their valuable inputs and bringing to us the latest in the world of healthcare.
