Eating slowly may have benefits for weight loss

A recent study showed the quicker you eat, the less likely you are to notice how much you eat, meaning you could be taking in more kilojoules than you think! It seems speed eaters may also be unaware of how full they feel afterwards, two factors that ultimately affect the body’s ability to maintain, lose or gain weight.

The study assessed the impact of eating slowly compared to eating quickly on feelings of fullness among 30 healthy subjects. The participants were free to choose as much food as they wanted within a set time period.

When eating quickly, the subjects ate more but didn’t feel as full as the slow eaters. Eating slowly led to a significant decrease in energy (kilojoule) intake of around 300 kilojoules, and satiety was higher at the end of the meal.

Take home message: Enjoy your food! Pace yourself and eat in a relaxed environment with minimal distractions.

Source: Journal of the American Dietetic Association, July 2008

There are many factors that affect what and how we eat – have your say in our new poll on the environmental impact of food here.

Exercise and metabolism: feel the burn

A recent web poll conducted by Food & Nutrition Australia shows two thirds of people have the right idea about the role of exercise in relation to daily kilojoule needs. When asked whether you need to burn off everything you eat through exercise, 67% correctly said no – you don’t!

The amount of kilojoules your body burns at any given time is primarily determined by your resting metabolic rate (RMR). RMR refers to the number of kilojoules your body needs to perform vital functions daily like pump blood, breathe, deliver fuel to cells and keep your organs working effectively. This accounts for 50-75% of your daily kilojoule needs meaning you don’t need to burn up everything you eat through exercise! While your RMR is mostly genetic, you can influence the total amount of energy you burn in a day by making smart lifestyle choices. These include: Exercising regularly and increasing or maintaining muscle mass (muscle burns more energy at rest than fat). Eating regularly. This helps keep your digestive system working, therefore boosting your metabolism. Avoiding starvation diets. Eating too little causes the body to conserve more energy, therefore slowing your metabolism to compensate for eating less.

Take home message: Find out your resting metabolic rate so you can eat according to your energy needs.

Food & Nutrition Australia offers a simple metabolism test which determines how many kilojoules you need in a day to maintain, gain or lose weight. Your metabolic rate is unique to you and is an important piece of information in a successful weight management plan. Book your metabolism test today!

Source: Keim NL, et.al. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 2004;104:1398-409

Make an appointment today!