How your brain can trick you into feeling satisfied.
And you can use this to your advantage — helping you to eat lighter and healthier.
Which would you rather eat:
• Rich, buttery roasted sweet corn
• Corn
• Reduced-sodium corn
• Vitamin-rich corn
Well, those were the choices offered in the cafeteria at Stanford University earlier this year.
The only thing was, it was all the same corn — it was just described differently.
You see, researchers wanted to see just how much the description of a food influences two things:
1 Your decision to choose it
2 How much of it you eat
So, for 46 days, they randomly changed how they described vegetables on the lunch menu in Stanford’s cafeteria. (They didn’t change how the foods were cooked, just what they called them.)
And here’s what they learned:
• People were MOST likely to pick vegetables described in “decadent” terms.
• They were LEAST likely to pick them if they were described in “healthy” terms.
• They ate LARGER PORTIONS of the veggies described in “decadent” terms.
Now, this study goes together perfectly with another Stanford study, conducted by some of the same researchers.
For this study, there were two groups of participants. Both groups received the same 380-calorie milkshake (yummy!).
However, the scientists told one group that it was a rich, delicious, “indulgent” 620-calorie shake…
And they told the other group that it was a “sensible,” healthy 140-calorie shake.
For both groups, they checked the participants’ levels of ghrelin — the “hunger hormone”…
And guess what:
The “decadent shake” group experienced a dramatic decline in their ghrelin level after drinking the shake — making them feel full.
Meanwhile, the “healthy shake” group still had high ghrelin after drinking the shake — making them still feel hungry…
Even though they had the SAME shake!
I was blown away by this…
Who knew your actual hunger hormones could change… just because you thought you consumed something rich and filling?
Well, it turns out… your brain can trick you into feeling satisfied.
And you can use this to your advantage — helping you to eat lighter and healthier.
Here’s how:
If you have a hard time making yourself eat your veggies or other healthy foods…
Focus on the delicious, savory, yummy aspects — and avoid calling them “healthy” or “good for you.”
In other words, FORGET they’re healthy!
Because thinking something is “healthy” can leave you feeling unsatisfied — which makes you more likely to reach for something
REALLY unhealthy!
Besides, healthy food really can be delicious and satisfying.
That’s why I often send you tasty, healthy recipes you can enjoy.
And because you’re probably getting hungry right now with all this food talk…
Here’s a wonderful, delicious snack recipe you can try today:
Roasted Ginger and Garlic Butternut Squash Wedges
Ingredients
- 2 lbs butternut squash peeled and cut into wedges
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbsp fresh ginger finely grated
- 4 cloves garlic minced
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
-
Combine minced garlic, olive oil, and ginger in a large bowl.
-
Add squash and mix to coat well.
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Place squash on baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes or until tender.
Recipe Notes
Winter squash are coming into season, so now is the perfect time to try these yummy wedges.
I’m sure you’ll love the sweet-and-savory taste… and the delicious aroma wafting through your kitchen.
Mmm, I can almost smell that tasty squash cooking right now. 🙂
Enjoy!
How not to over eat during the holiday season
Holiday Season is the easiest time to overeat and wreck your diet. All that delicious food is just so tempting…
That’s why studies have shown that people often eat up to 4,500 calories during the Thanksgiving feast.
That’s two whole days of food… in one meal! Talk about a waistline-ruiner…
The good news is that it’s easier than you might think to avoid this… and still enjoy the Season.
You see, today, I’ve got an amazingly simple routine I want to show you.
It helps you enjoy your food — without overdoing it.
I use it myself, and it works like a charm!
The routine has two parts — BEFORE and DURING the Meals:
Before:
- Eat normal meals before the big feastivas. Don’t skip breakfast or lunch, or eat reduced-size meals. That idea of “saving your appetite” means you’ll sit down to dinner hungrier — and be more tempted to overeat.
- Avoid the appetizers, snacks, and calorie-filled beverages. Yes, they’re delicious. But they aren’t worth the extra calories.
During:
For the following 5 steps, make sure you have a tall glass of unsweetened tea or water to go along with your meal.
- Take small portions of food. Don’t feel like you need to fill your plate. For one thing, the old “clean your plate” syndrome usually kicks in — even if you feel stuffed. And if you’re still hungry, you can always have seconds.
- Take a small bite, put down your silverware, and thoroughly chew your food before swallowing it. This will force you to eat more slowly… which means you’ll eat less. Also, putting down your utensils removes the temptation to quickly take another bite. And that extra chewing helps you digest your food better.
- Take a sip of your tea or water. This will slow down your eating AND make you feel full faster.
- Engage someone in a bit of conversation. For one thing, it’s a great way to catch up with family and friends you might not see often. But it also keeps you from eating too fast.
- Repeat steps 2 through 4.
Here’s why this routine works like clockwork:
It takes 20-30 minutes for your stomach to tell your brain that it’s full.
This routine forces you eat more slowly and get full faster… giving your brain time to get the message BEFORE you overeat.
The result: You won’t feel like you’re ready to explode when you leave the table — and you won’t have “eater’s remorse” for overdoing it.
And best of all… you’ll stay on track with your health and weight goals!