10 Ways To Control Your Hunger Pangs

1. Start your meal with a salad or soup

Why ? They will help to fill your little stomach and take the edge off your appetite, which mean you’ll be less likely to overeat at the next course. In one study participants were given meals with exactly the same number of calories either as solid food or as soup. When the calories were given in the form of soup, people said they felt fuller for longer. Researchers also found that after soup, participants went on to eat less at their next meal

2. Be snack meat

Why ? The hungrier you are when you start to eat, the longer it takes your hunger to subside. So in other words, the hungrier you are, the more you need to eat before you feel full. The best way to avoid getting hungry is to eat every 3-4 hours – three small meals with a couple of healthy snack in between is perfect. Protein-rich snacks like a yoghurt or a boiled egg or fibre-rich snack such as oatcakes or hummus with crudités are the best choices to make you feel full longer

3. Up the protein

Why ? Eat slightly larger portion of lean protein such as lean meat, fish, shellfish, eggs and low-fat dairy products (for example, skimmed milk, cottage cheese, low-fat yoghurt).

4. Turn off the TV

Why ? If you’re distracted while eating, you’re more likely to miss the I’m full signals that your stomach sends your brain when you’ve had enough to eat. One study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that when people listened to a detective story as they were eating, they ate 13 percent more calories than they did without any distraction.

5. Fill up on fibre

Why ? Fibre-rich food are more filling. Choose wholemeal bread, and brown rice and pasta instead of white; and add beans and pulses to salads and soup.

6. Choose foods that take time and effort to eat

Why ? Corn on the cob, a crunchy salad or fish with bones cannot be rushed, and will force you to eat more slowly and help you to feel full quicker.

7. Eat more fruit and vegetable

Why ? Their high water content will help fill you up.

8. Drink before you eat

Why ? Try a large of vegetable juice or fizzy water 10 minutes before you’re due to sit down to eat.

9. Take your time

Why ? Lay your knife and folk down on the table between each mouthful. Chew food thoroughly before taking a second mouthful and focus on what you’re eating – all of these thing help slow down the pace at which you eat. When you eat slowly, you’ll feel full quicker.

10. Eat an apple

Why ? Before each meal, in one study in Washington, 346 people were asked to eat an apple 20 minutes before each meal/ without making any other changes to their diet, participants lost an average 1½ stone in just 3 months. Researchers felt that the apples helped to promote a feeling of fullness, which meant participants didn’t eat as much at the subsequent meal.