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Control Hunger, Not Calories

What to Eat to Minimize Hunger and Maximize Satiety

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Have you eaten a loaf of garlic bread, a bowl of pasta, and pistachio gelato and still felt hungry? Have you ever finished dinner and then secretly ate a bag of chips before bed? You’re not alone. I hear these stories every day. Your mind tells you that you should be full, but your stomach still complains that it’s empty. They feel helpless and out of control, binging on foods they know they should be avoiding.

The opposite happens as well. Some people eat half a sandwich or a small salad at lunchtime and then feel completely stuffed. They’re not trying to be modest. They won’t eat more because it is uncomfortable for them. It’s not willpower. It’s physiology.

What you eat determines how much you eat. If you eat a lot of foods that fill you up, you can’t eat anymore. There are strong satiety hormones that stop you. If you eat foods that don’t fill you up, you’ll eat more and more often. There are even foods that make you hungrier.

Different foods with the same calories produce different levels of satiety. Some foods make you full and others don’t, for the simple reason that they affect satiety mechanisms completely differently. We eat…

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Dr. Jason Fung
Dr. Jason Fung

Written by Dr. Jason Fung

Nephrologist. New York Times best selling author. Interest in type 2 diabetes reversal and intermittent fasting. Founder www.TheFastingMethod.com.

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