Can you imagine that chewing your food more can help you lose weight? This may sound like a crazy claim, but this idea has some truth.
And anyway, I never share anything that is not research-backed. Today we will talk about how chewing your food can help you lose weight fast. Along with that, we will also learn how some mindful habits can prevent you from overeating.
But, first welcome to FGW. Here I talk about health and stuff, and things that make sense. Let’s start – Insert theme music here 🎶.
Chew more to lose weight
I know how often people find ways to lose weight fast. I come across so many people as a holistic nutritionist who want fast results. But, let me tell you, there isn’t anything like fast weight loss.
In fact, chewing food more increases the time you can finish your food. You need to chew your food more so that your brain can understand when you are full and it signals you to stop.
That seems simple so far, right? But it is not. Behind this mechanism, a few hormones are doing their job to signal the brain. These are called satiety hormones, and they signal the brain when to stop.
These hormones are called satiety hormones. Three different hormones come under this category, and they each have their unique function. We will understand more about them, but before that, we need to understand the hunger hormone.
The hunger hormone
Before you can feel full and before you eat anything, you need to feel hungry. The hunger hormone, or ghrelin, sends signals to the brain on behalf of the stomach that say, “Dude, I’m hungry, tell this human to feed me.” And hence, we feel hungry.
When it’s feeding time, or around lunch or dinner, ghrelin levels are high. Even if you are on calorie restriction and are eating less, ghrelin levels are at their peak.
After a meal, when you are full, ghrelin levels are down again, and satiety hormones are high.
Chewing helps
As I mentioned earlier, satiety hormones are a group of hormones that are directly or indirectly related to chewing.
When you chew your food more, you are giving additional time for your brain to register that you are full. Often, you might have noticed that when you eat fast, you don’t know how much you are eating and end up eating more.
Chewing also helps in the efficient release of saliva, which has its own role. A lot of digestion starts within the mouth itself. We can feel the taste of food with proper chewing, courtesy of taste buds. Food gets broken down, and nutrient absorption becomes easier.
While this is happening, our stomach is getting additional time to send a signal of fullness if we are full and may not need additional food. Chewing also helps us catch this signal and avoid overeating (only if we are mindful).
Role of satiety hormones in weight loss
Satiety hormones are a group of three hormones: Cholecystokinin (CCK), Peptide YY (PYY), and Leptin. These hormones tell the brain that you are full. So, food lovers, now you know the real conspirators behind fullness.
👉 CCK is released by the small intestine. It responds well to fat and protein in the diet and works fast to signal your brain that you are full. Chewing food breaks down food into small particles and contributes to a more robust gut response, especially CCK secretion and PYY production.
CCK also tells the gallbladder to release bile so that fats can be easily absorbed and signals the pancreas to break down the protein from food.
CCK acts quickly. It slows down digestion and sends a signal of fullness to the brain within minutes. This is known as a short-term signal.
👉 Peptide YY (PYY) is also responsible for satiety, but unlike CCK, it has a slow response to satiety. It is released by cells in the lower part of the small intestine and colon.
PYY interacts with receptors in the brain that control appetite, promoting the feeling of fullness and reducing hunger.
Here, chewing gives some additional time for this hormone to take action.
PYY levels could be low in obese people, so they may not understand when to stop.
👉 Last but not least, leptin. It is a bit faster than PYY and sends signals to the brain about fullness.
Leptin is produced by fat cells and is directly proportional to the body fat you have. However, obese people may develop leptin resistance and might not understand when to stop.
It’s not necessary that chewing will always affect these hormones. Other factors like genetics, overall health matters a lot.
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Other things that can help you to lose weight
There are so many things that I can mention here, but we will especially talk about chewing and these hormones.
I won’t say that chewing is the only reason these satiety hormones work, but a few other factors can influence these hormones and weight loss.
▶️ Diet: A high-protein and high-fiber diet tends to keep you fuller for much longer, potentially lowering ghrelin levels.
Similarly, a diet rich in processed food and trans fats plays with your brain and makes you overeat.
▶️ Sleep: When you are sleeping less or have a messed-up circadian rhythm, your body may produce more ghrelin and less leptin.
▶️ Mindfulness: Choose a smaller plate and eat slowly, so you can tell if you actually need to eat more or are satisfied with less.
Also, avoid distractions while eating. If we are distracted, we tend to overeat.
▶️ Time of Eating: Aligning meal times with the circadian rhythm can be beneficial as well. Eating earlier can actually benefit metabolism and aid in weight loss.
▶️ Stress: Stress can elevate cortisol levels, which can increase appetite and decrease leptin signaling.
In the end
Chewing has some potential benefits for weight loss, but how many times we should ideally chew food is still yet to be determined. There is no specific number behind it; however, the better you chew, the more mindful you are being to your body and food intake.
An effective solution for how to lose weight could be chewing. We need to understand what we are eating, when we are eating, and if we are eating as much as we are supposed to.
Keep smiling 😊
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