Foods

SINCE YOU HAVE TO EAT every day anyway, might as well include some foods that helps suppress or satisfy appetite, right? Some foods have higher “satiety” value than others. And some foods have proven appetite-suppressing effects.  

Each of us is unique, of course, so our body also has its own unique physiology. You will need to experiment with some of the following food items to see which “work” for you. Some will work better for you than for someone else—and vice versa.  

The best foods for satiety and appetite suppression have at least some of the following characteristics. They are: 

• High in water and/or fiber content 
• Contain “good” fats for satiety (such as Omega-3s) 
• Are “nutrient dense” (a high ratio of essential nutrients to calories)   

In this list, you’re likely to find a few that help a LOT when the “hungries” attack you: 

Celery and Carrot Sticks  

High in both water and fiber content, as well as needed minerals. Keep some fresh-cut sticks handy in the fridge, along with other veggie snacks such as cherry tomatoes and cauliflower and broccoli pieces.  

Salads and Leafy Green Veggies 

Leafy green veggies (lettuce, cabbage, bok choy, chard, kale, etc.)—whether in salads, stir fry, green smoothies, or just raw—have so few calories that you really don’t even have to count them when working to lose weight. That’s true: You can have green leafy veggies in unlimited quantities and never record their calories. They are “free” or “negative calorie” foods, when it comes to weight loss. The reason: It takes as many calories for your body to digest them as these veggies add to your daily caloric intake.  

But even though they don’t contribute any calories worth counting, they do contribute another huge benefit: They help fill your stomach and turn off the brain’s hunger signals—another way of saying they help suppress your appetite.  

Most people don’t like to eat leafy greens plain, though a few hardy souls do! Perhaps the most common way to add leafy greens to your diet is in the form of salads.  

According to a study reported in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, when 42 women ate a simple 100-calorie salad before dinner, they consumed 12 percent fewer calories during that meal, even without any effort to diet or limit their intake. Salads also are nutrient dense—high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other things your body gets excited about.  

But beware of loading up salads with high-fat, high-calorie dressings, croutons, and other “add-ons” that can easily erase the main benefits of a fresh salad.  

Instead, fill up a large bowl with lettuce and other salad greens, then add no more than 100 calories’ worth of salad dressing. Look for one of the lower-calorie dressings out there (but avoid MSG, high-fructose corn syrup, and saturated fats as ingredients). Many good dressings have only 25 calories or so per tablespoon. Four such tablespoons will give you a huge salad with only 100 calories that you need to count (providing you even count calories on your chosen weight-loss plan).  

In a few minutes, you’ll notice that you feel quite full and that your hunger signals are gone or nearly so—you’ve effectively suppressed your appetite with only 100 “countable” calories! 

Another way to use leafy greens is to stir fry them. You don’t even need oils—plain water will do fine. Add onions, garlic, and soy sauce (or an especially tasty low-sodium soy sauce alternative listed at the bottom of this page: Bragg’s Liquid Aminos). And the calories in the sauce, onions, and garlic are so negligible that you don’t need to count those either. The entire stir fry is “free” in the calorie total. Yet you’ve taken in a large, filling serving of nutrient-dense, high-water-content food that leaves you feeling full and satisfied.

A third way to increase your intake of appetite-suppressing green veggies is to include them in green smoothies (see detail on the menu tab for this item).

Finally, an excellent way to add veggies to your daily intake is to steam them. Steaming is easy, and it retains nearly all the nutrients in vegetables that often are lost using other methods of preparation. See below for a top-rated Oster vegetable steamer (read the many positive reviews).

Soups 

Soup is one of the best-kept secrets to effective appetite control and weight loss. Researchers at Pennsylvania State University found that those consuming two servings of low-calorie soup daily lost a whopping 50 percent more weight than those consuming the exact same number of calories with typical convenience snack foods. 

The secret? The combination of high water and low calories in soup. But be sure to choose broths or vegetable soups, not high-fat creamy soups. One excellent choice: An organic vegetable broth such as that available at Trader Joe’s.  

Apples 

“An apple a day keeps the doctor away”? Pretty much true! Apples are sweet and contain plenty of natural fruit sugar, but because of high fiber content, that sugar is released slowly into the bloodstream, so it doesn’t send insulin spiking.  

Apples also take a while to chew, which gives your body extra time to register that you’re no longer as hungry.  

For appetite-curbing purposes, eat the largest apple you can find. Yes, an apple has some calories and carbs, but the carbs are the “good” carbs and are “slow-release.” And calories? Just try to eat 1,000 calories of apples in one sitting! Yet you can do that in no time with a “junk-food” snack like potato chips or donuts.  

Apples are one of the best, most easily available appetite-suppressing foods. Not only do they fill up your stomach with minimal calories, turning off you’re your hunger signals, they also contain a long list of nutrients: vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. 

Pine Nuts 

Pine nuts contain Pinolenic Acid (see the menu tab on this item)—a natural polyunsaturated fat that stimulates two powerful appetite-suppressing hormones. Both of these hormones play a major role in signaling the brain that you’re no longer hungry. In one study (see the menu tab again for more details), participants consuming a pinoleic acid extract reduced their food intake by 36 percent! 

“Banana Pudding” 

This one comes from one of the leading experts on nutrition anywhere today—Mike Adams, whose websites (www.naturalnews.com and www.truthpublishing.com) are among the most authoritative and informative when it comes to personal health.  

For Mike’s recipe, you’ll need a blender. Add a quart of soy milk to the blender, then a couple of scoops of unsweetened banana-flavored Simply Natural Spirutein soy protein powder (comes in several other flavors, as well—see a good source at the end of this page.) Add stevia powder as the sweetener. Mike also tosses in some supergreens powders, but you may want to avoid that at first, since it’s an acquired taste (and—it turns your banana pudding green!). 

If you were to blend this up, you’d have a banana-flavored soy protein shake. But we’re not done yet: While the blender is running, put in about 1/2 tablespoon of guar gum powder, plus another 1/2 tablespoon of xanthan gum powder (sources for guar gum and xanthan gum at the end of this section). These are thickeners—and be careful: They work so well you’ll have a burbling volcano out of your blender if you use too much! 

Within seconds, your blender will start whining, and the whole mixture will attain the consistency of pudding. Now just pour it into a bowl and eat it like banana pudding! The mixture has near-zero carbs, no sugars, and is high in soy protein. Plus, it tastes great and fills you up fast. This is a great choice for a late-night appetite emergency. 

Pickles 

This is another appetite-suppressing food recommended by Mike Adams. But avoid totally the pickles you find at most regular grocery stores. These contain harmful artificial coloring, flavoring, and are often loaded with sugar. Instead, look for all-natural pickles such as those you can find at a health-oriented store such as Trader Joe’s—pickles without any artificial coloring or flavoring. And they’re extremely low in calories, as well. An entire jar of pickles may provide you only 50 calories or so. Yet they take up space to make you feel “full,” and they have high satiety value to turn off your appetite.  

High-Fiber Foods 

These foods are low in calories but high in bulk—they take up space in your stomach and provide that sense of “fullness.” Almost all whole plant foods contain high fiber. Among some of the best sources: Oatmeal, apples (already mentioned), beans, and believe it or not, avocados (one medium avocado has nearly as much dietary fiber as a cup of cooked beans). Avocados are also a great source of the kind of fat that actually helps you lose weight—Omega-3 and Omega-6 essential fatty acids (see the Omega-3 EFAs menu tab). Another great way to suppress appetite using fiber is to take some fiber capsules with water prior to meals (see the Glucomannan section for more info).  

Whey Protein Powder 

Whey protein powder is not only low in calories but surprisingly high in satiety value. It’s one of the standards for those serious about losing weight. Some recent studies suggest that whey helps reduce food intake by influencing hormones that signal a feeling of fullness. Besides helping to lower blood pressure and bolstering the immune system, whey protein helps build muscle tissue while decreasing body fat.  

Whey is the liquid portion of milk remaining in the manufacture of cheese. For those who have reason to avoid dairy products, alternatives to whey protein include soy or rice protein powders.  

 GOOD SOURCES FOR ITEMS MENTIONED
IN THIS SECTION:

 Oster Electronic Vegetable Steamer

For xanthan gum, guar gum:
(Enter desired product in the eVitamins search box)

eVitamins

For Simply Natural Banana-Flavor Spirutein:
(Enter the above in the House of Nutrition search box) 

House of Nutrition

For Bragg's Liquid Aminos:
(Click through below direct to Amazon.com)

For Whey Protein:
(Click below and enter "whey protein" in BodyBuilding.com search box—many brands, many flavors)