Why Eating Slowly Can Help You Lose Weight

You most likely know that when having a meal, it will take approximately twenty minutes before our brain can register that our stomach is full. Therefore in order not to overeat and get fat in the process, we have to eat slower. Furthermore, there are other reasons why we should to eat slowly and this article will show you why.

When we consuming a meal, the food we are eating is broken down by our digestive system so as to let the intestines absorb the nutrients easier. However, it takes about twenty minutes of the digestive process before your brain "knows" that you are full.

That goes to say that if you are a fast eater and usually finish your plate before twenty minutes, your brain will not signal to you that you are already full and so you may eat more food than you actually require.

This is even more so when you are eating a self helping buffet because as you do not feel that you already have eaten enough, you may help yourself to more helpings. This can spell a disaster to your weight management control.

Let's refer to a recent report from the University of Rhode Island which studied the effects of eating speed. The report confirmed that you can lose weight by eating at a slower speed.

In the duration of the research, they found that fast eaters test subjects ate about 650 calories while the slower eater subjects ate only 580 calories per meal. As such, there are about 70 calories difference per meal between the two types of research subjects.

Therefore if we assume that the test subjects are eating three square meals per day, the slow eaters will consume 210 calories less than the fast eaters and if you are to extrapolate those calorie numbers into months and even years, can you imagine how many fewer calories the slower eaters eat. It's an awful lot of calories, isn't it? That is why you can lose weight if you eat slowly.

Now, the same researchers also noticed that the faster eaters tend to drink less water than their slower eating counterparts. It was noted that the fast eaters drink an average of 290g of water while slower eaters drink up to 410g!

You may ask what this has got to do with losing weight. It is actually common sense because more water makes you feel fuller by filling your stomach for longer periods of time so you may not be tempted snack between meals.

So do you want to lose weight by eating at a slower speed? If the answer is yes, here are some tips.

Chew food more thoroughly - By chewing your food more thoroughly, you will be eating slower. Furthermore, it lessens the load on your digestive system. So make it a point to take your time when eating your meals.

Drink lots of plain water - Plain water is free of calories and is good for your general well being. As mentioned earlier, drinking more plain water with and between your meals fills up your stomach allowing you to eat less because you feel full.

Control food portion - This may be common sense but precisely because it is such a no brainer that that people did not think about it when having a meal. So remember to control the portion of food that you eat for each meal.

Controlling your food portion will help you to limit the amount of calories you consume. Never go for second helpings. If you are still thinking that you are hungry, well, then drink more plain water.

Put your fork and knife down - Simply lay back and enjoy your food. Do this by putting your utensils down every time you put food in your mouth. This is done to slow down your eating speed.

Eating slowly allows you to enjoy your food, leaving you feeling full and satisfied. So if you want to lose weight in a more pleasant way, become a slower eater now.

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