Hacking your hunger hormones can be done naturally without medications and is simpler than you think. I am going to get a little nerdy here, but fiber is magical!
When we eat fiber our good gut bacteria feast on it to make short-chain fatty acids (SCFA). These SCFA's decrease inflammation, boost your immunity & reduce risk of chronic diseases.
SCFA's stimulate the production of leptin, the hormone made by fat cells to tell your brain to stop eating (this happens over the long-term).
There are two other appetite suppressing hormones (PYY & GLP-1), that signal our brain to stop eating on a meal to meal basis.
These hormones are activated by SCFA's, and get released into our bloodstream, shoot right up into the appetite center of your brain & turn down our cravings.
The flip side to your appetite suppressing hormones is ghrelin, your hunger hormone. Fiber-rich foods suppress ghrelin hormone & calm your cravings. What seems like magic to me, studies have shown that after eating a high-fiber diet, subjects reported that high-calorie foods were less-cravable!
However, when you eat something like white bread, where the calories are divorced from the fiber, you don't get the signals that you've eaten enough and you will always feel hungry despite eating sufficient calories.
We all tend to obsess (me included) about how much protein we eat, but we need to focus more on our fiber intake.
How much do you need? The recommendation is 24 grams per day for women (and 38 grams daily for men), but our bodies were designed to tolerate more.
The best sources of fiber are whole plant foods, legumes & whole grains like chickpeas, split peas, lentils, & other canned beans (all good sources of protein too). Avocados, berries, pears, flaxseeds, chia seeds, & coconut are great sources too.
FYI: Leafy greens & some fruits are the poorest sources of whole food fiber; but please still eat them for their nutrients. Meat, dairy, & eggs have zero fiber.
Do you know how much you are eating per day? A good place to start is tracking for a couple days how much fiber you are getting in. Then, start low n' slowly increase your intake. It's like working out, your body needs to adjust to the fiber!
Tips for boosting fiber for children & adults!
Include fiber-rich foods at meal & snack times. If eating refined packaged food, pair it with a fiber-rich whole food. Ex: add peas or broccoli to macaroni.
Choose whole grains over refined. Pick whole grain pastas, breads, crackers, & pizza crusts. Try brown, red, or black over white rice. Use whole grain flours instead of white flours when baking muffins, cookies, or other treats.
Add grains and legumes. Throw some beans or lentils and barley or quinoa into soups, salads, stews, stir-fries, and burritos. Try legume based pastas.
Load up on a variety of vegetables and fruits with meals & snacks. Pre-dinner snack serve some veggies & dip.
Pick fiber-rich treats like popcorn, kale chips, frozen banana pops, homemade granola bars using oats, dried fruits, nuts, & seeds.
Looking for a fiber-rich meal plan? Check out my free 7-day meal plan including recipes & shopping list here.
Have a great day,
Stephanie
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