5 Special Foods That Fight Hunger

There are a multitude of foods that have the power to tame your hunger and decrease your appetite. When combined with healthy amounts of exercise, eating these foods can help you to more easily lose your excess and unwanted weight.


If you want to feel full all day on less food, focus on eating these appetite reducing foods: 

1. Water - Increases satiety

 

While not technically a food, water is one of the easiest ways to satisfy your hunger. That’s right, I said hunger not thirst. Often we mistake feeling dehydrated for hunger. Being dehydrated can increase the hormonal signals that ghrelin sends out, so your body falsely thinks you need food.

Whenever you feel hungry, try drinking a large glass of water before you eat. Wait for ten minutes and if you still feel hungry then have something to eat. This will not only rule out false hunger, but will also fill your belly so there is less room to overindulge in food.

Water also helps to distract you from eating out of pure boredom. It gives you something healthy to consume as often as you like. Be sure to drink the recommended eight glasses of water each and every day. You’ll be surprised at how much drinking water can eliminate your hunger pangs.

2. Lemon or Lime Water - Increases satiety

 

A simple step to reducing your hunger is to add fresh lemon or lime juice to your water. Not only does in taste great, but research now suggests that consuming the juice of one lemon or lime can help suppress your appetite so that you feel fuller for longer and eat less than you otherwise would.

Lemon and limes contain a naturally occurring soluble fiber called pectin. Pectin not only lowers blood glucose levels, it also binds with bile acids to lower cholesterol and inhibit fat absorption. By slowing down the digestion of sugars, the pectin found in lemons will also keep you feeling fuller for longer.

In a study conducted at the Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas and published in the “Journal of the American College of Nutrition.” Tiwary found that recruits who drank orange juice with pectin as part of their meals felt full for four hours, compared to recruits who felt full for one hour eating ice cream with their meals.

If you are looking for a quick and easy way to reduce your appetite then drink lots and lots of lemon water. Simply add the juice from one fresh lemon or lime into a litre of water. This makes a refreshing drink that you can turn to whenever you feel hungry or thirsty!

3. Cinnamon – Balances blood sugar levels

 

If you are looking for a quick and easy way to manage your hunger, why not spice up your life with a little cinnamon. The brown bark from a cinnamon tree helps reduce your appetite by stabilizing your blood sugar levels.

Excess insulin production will make you overweight and hungry. Cinnamon stabilizes insulin levels while reducing insulin resistance. It does this in three ways; one by activating enzymes that stimulate insulin receptors. Two, it enhances the effects of insulin-signalling pathways in your skeletal muscle tissue. Lastly cinnamon slows down the absorption of carbohydrates in the small intestine, which helps you feel fuller for longer.

Sprinkle ½ a teaspoon of cinnamon as a spice on food or if you are game you can eat it raw. You may wish to sprinkle it on your fruit, add it to your morning smoothie, sprinkle it in your lemon tea or add it to your quinoa porridge or applesauce.

4. Green Super-foods - Keeps your Body Nourished

 

Green foods are fantastic for your body, but green super-foods are even better. Think of them as green foods on steroids. Green foods provide your body with an abundant array of vital nutrients. They have the highest concentrations of easily digestible vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that protect and heal your body. When your body has everything it needs to function efficiently it will stop sending you constant messages that it needs more - more nutrients, more sustenance and ultimately more food.

Fresh is always best, so make sure you add a variety of fresh leafy greens to your daily diet.

5. Chia seeds – Increases satiety and stabilizes blood sugar levels

 

Chia seeds are a grain that is native to Central and South America. In ancient times they were cherished by the Aztecs, who ate them to increase stamina and promote general well-being.

Rich in omega-3 fatty acids, iron and calcium, chia seeds are great for decreasing hunger because they act like a sponge to absorb sugars and stabilize blood sugar levels. These tiny seeds can hold up to twenty times their weight in water, so when they’re mixed with liquid they plump up in your belly keeping you feeling fuller for longer.

Chia seeds are so easy to eat. For weight loss purposes try:

• Eating some Chia seeds right before a meal to “fill up” and not eat as much as you would have otherwise.
   
• Mixing chia seeds into foods so the food fills you up faster and makes you eat less.
   
• Adding chia seeds to your smoothie.
   
• Mixing chia seeds with a little almond or rice milk and letting it set into a chia pudding. Fill up on the pudding instead of eating unhealthy snacks.