6 healthy foods to fill you up and slim you down

The grumble and rumble of your stomach at the most inopportune time can make even the most health conscious of eaters succumb to unhealthy snacking. Choosing healthy foods that will fill you up is essential to maintain a healthy weight or to lose weight. Fiber, protein, and water are the essential components to add to food and meal combination that you can enjoy without breaking your calorie bank, Medical Daily reports.

The key to choosing better foods to keep you feeling fuller, longer is based on the satiety and glycemic index. Australian researchers composed a fullness scale that measures how high or how low foods rank on the fullness (satiety index) in a study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The index measures how full you feel after eating 240 calories of food and how long after eating you feel full again. The sugar crash scale (glycemic index) measures how quickly you get a sugar high from the food and then crash. The ideal foods to consume are those that have a high satiety and a low glycemic index, like oranges and fish.

Apple

An apple a day keeps the hunger away. Fruits and vegetables, like apples, are called “high-volume foods” because they add bulk your meals while helping to fill your stomach. Brandon Mentore, a strength and conditioning coach, sports nutritionist, and functional medicine practitioner in Philadelphia, Pa. told Medical Daily in an email: “[Apples] have a fibrous structure in the flesh as well as the skin that creates intestinal bulk which basically has and expansion effect in your intestines that occupies space and signals to the body that it's full.” Mentore suggests to eat an apple before a meal to get a better satiety or fullness response and prevent overeating.

Adding an apple to your daily meals can also aid weight loss. A 2003 study published in the journal Nutrition found when women added either three apples or three pears to their daily meals, they lost more weight than people who added three oat cookies to their diets. This is a surprising finding since both the fruit and cookies contained the exact same amount of dietary fiber.

Avocado

Avocados are not just good for making guacamole, they can also keep you feeling fuller, longer on their own. A 2013 study published in Nutrition Journal found women who ate half an avocado with their lunch felt 22 percent more satisfied. They also had a 24 percent lower desire to snack three hours later than on days when they ate a lunch without an avocado equivalent in calories.

The heart-healthy monounsaturated fat and fiber content makes this food an ideal addition to meals or even as a snack. The medium and short chained fatty acids in avocados provide energy in to your metabolism and reduce hunger signals and appetite.

Chocolate

Chocolate lovers can rejoice now that science has found it can help curb cravings for both sweet and salty foods. A study published in the journal Nutrition and Diabetes found dark chocolate promotes satiety, lowers the desire to eat something sweet, and suppresses energy intake compared with milk chocolate. Moreover, participants were found to eat 17 percent fewer calories at a meal following the consumption of dark chocolate.

The reason dark chocolate is healthier and promotes satiety compared to milk chocolate is because it has a greater cacao content. “Cacao is rich in nutrients and antioxidants and thus nourishes our cells allowing us to feel satisfied,” Dr. Derek Lawrence, a naturopathic doctor at Revive Naturopathic Medicine in Carlsbad, Calif. told Medical Daily in an email. Milk chocolate has a high dairy and sugar content with relatively low cacao content. Moreover, it is calorie rich but nutrient poor and therefore, does not sustain you as long.

Eggs

Eggs are a nutrient dense food that has a relatively low glycemic index. They are also a great source of protein, and the yolk also contains some fat. “Both protein and fat slow down digestion and this keeps you feeling full much longer than a high-carb breakfast,” Rumsey said.

A 2013 study presented at The Obesity Society's annual scientific meeting in Atlanta, Ga., suggests eating a 300-calorie breakfast that is made up between 30 to 39 grams of protein such as eggs, reduces hunger and increases fullness between breakfast and lunch. Moreover, people who consume a high-protein breakfast tend to consume fewer calories throughout the day.

Soup

Chicken noodle soup is good for the soul and for your weight management. A 2007 study published in the journal Appetite found consuming soup can enhance satiety and reduce energy intake. People who had a bowl of low-calorie, broth-based soup before their lunch reduced their total calorie intake by 20 percent.

It’s no surprise soups that have a thicker fattier broth will make you feel full faster. The volume it takes up in your stomach is what leads to satiety. The right soup can pack a ton of nutrition and satisfy your taste buds. ”Good bone broth should be made from bones of grass fed/pasture raised beef or chicken and boiled for 48-72 hours. This ensures enough time for all the cartilage, collagen and tendons to break down and release their nutritious and energy filled amino acids. The result is a thick, flavorful and nutritious broth that can be the base for any soup from butternut squash soup to beef stew,” Lawrence said.

Water

Drinking water throughout the day can help reduce hunger pangs. Just two 8-ounce glasses of the weight-loss elixir, taken before meals, can enable people to shed the pounds, according to a clinical trial presented at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society. The participants who drank water before meals, three times per day, lost about five pounds more than dieters who did not increase their water intake over the course of 12 weeks.

Water flushes out toxins, carries nutrients to the cells and regulates body functions. Staying hydrated will eliminate the false feeling of hunger. A good rule of thumb is to drink a glass of water and wait 10 minutes to see if you’re still hungry.

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