The question of how to eat less is tantamount to the question of how to eat fewer calories. Clearly, weight gain is associated with eating more frequently (as well as consuming larger portion sizes).
At the same time, the mechanism for regulating the consumption of food underlies the maintenance of the body’s vital functions. This involves not only all the senses, but also a number of receptors in the stomach, brain and other organs. How can you control these mechanisms—and how can you eat less?
How does hunger and satiety work?
Hunger is a feeling that arises under the action of several metabolic mechanisms that regulate food intake. First, external stimuli such as the smell of food being cooked or colorful images of fragrant dishes can trigger hunger.
Secondly, the hormone ghrelin influences the formation of hunger. Under its influence, the subjects not only began to eat more often than usual, but more often thought about eating food and even looking for it. Third, low blood glucose levels can also push you to eat something sweet.
In turn, satiety is a feeling designed to stop eating food. Both gastric mechanoreceptors and the hormone leptin are responsible for the formation of saturation . Unfortunately, obesity often disturbs sensitivity to its action in people, thus provoking overeating.
Is it really necessary to eat less?
The actual volume of food eaten is indeed related to the feeling of fullness. A full stomach sends signals to the brain that you need to stop eating. However, the calorie content of food with the same volume varies greatly. 200 kcal in the form of celery is ten times more voluminous than 200 kcal in the form of oil.
That is, to maintain a stable body weight (meaning the consumption of calorie intake), you do not need to eat less at all – you need to eat more correctly. Most likely, you will have to eat even more – but not due to high-calorie fats, but due to the fiber contained in vegetables.
What creates the feeling of hunger?
From a practical standpoint, the most important question related to the formation of hunger is whether one desires to eat due to an external stimulus (such as the smell or sound of food being prepared, the image of food, etc.) or if they are genuinely hungry due to a lack of energy.
In the first case (when hunger is caused by external stimuli), simply changing the focus of consciousness for a short period of time—stopping thoughts about food and redirecting them to something else—can be sufficient. If the feeling of hunger has easily disappeared, it is obvious that you do not need an extra snack and extra calories at all.
If thoughts about food repeatedly arise, and you are certain that they were not influenced by external factors, it is likely that you genuinely desire to eat.
How does ghrelin work?
Ghrelin is an appetite hormone that controls the amount of food eaten, regulates intestinal motility and affects the synthesis of insulin and other hormones. Discovered in 1999 by Masayasu Koijima as an endogenous receptor capable of stimulating the release of growth hormone.
Brain neurons receive a direct signal for actions related to the search for food when it is primarily produced in the stomach in the absence of food. The body begins to produce ghrelin a few hours after a lack of food and starvation.
Although the connection between ghrelin and obesity is now clear, scientists do not fully understand how it works. In some cases, overweight people have low ghrelin levels – which should cause them to eat less, but they don’t.
Leptin is a satiety hormone
Leptin is a key hormone that regulates satiety and satiety. Visceral fat produces it and controls energy metabolism in the body, including its impact on weight gain. Basically, it suppresses appetite and stops eating.
In a healthy person, a stable level of leptin tells the brain that there is an adequate supply of energy. However, with the growth of visceral fat, the metabolism fails – the brain begins to believe that a person constantly needs calories.
In addition, the production of leptin is closely related to tissue resistance to insulin. The result of an excess (or lack) of leptin is an appetite disturbance and metabolic problems.
How to eat less – practical advice
A key tip to help you eat less is to control the glycemic index of your carbs. Fast carbohydrates spike blood sugar levels, which then drop — creating a feeling that many mistake for hunger.
In turn, high-fiber foods (whole grains, vegetables) help the body maintain a stable glucose level – ensuring full satiety. In addition, proteins and fats also help to resist hunger for a longer time.
- Carefully study the composition of the products – and exclude the flavor enhancer monosodium glutamate . Although glutamate itself is not harmful to health, it makes food taste better – by increasing the amount eaten.
- Learn to eat mindfully – and exclude eating at the same time as watching TV or scrolling monotonously through social networks.
- Control portion sizes – use medium and small plates, and never report the addition. Learn to see the portion that will ensure satiety.
- Avoid spontaneous snacking – ultra-processed foods (snacks, chips, crackers, ice cream, pizza) are not only high in calories, but also addictive².
- Eat only when you really need energy – avoid eating as a way to combat boredom or to improve your mood.
To eat less, you need to rethink your entire approach to nutrition. Often, proper nutrition involves fairly large portions – but not at the expense of fat.