Crisps, alcohol, pastries…and 7 other foods that are actually making you HUNGRIER
Processed carbs, sugar, salt and trans-fats combine to make you still feel peckish... even when your stomach's stuffed
IF you’re feeling peckish, it’s probably a good idea to have a snack.
But choose wisely, because some foods may actually make you feel hungrier than you were before you dug in.
Weight-loss specialist Dr Sue Decotiis told : “Hunger is the result of many complex interactions that occur in the stomach, intestines, brain, pancreas and bloodstream.”
These foods can all make you feel like you’re running on empty… even when your stomach’s stuffed.
White bread and pastries
The carbs in some white foods are released quickly into the bloodstream. And white flour is stripped of its outer shell, the bran, which depletes the bread’s fibre content.
Switch to brown bread and other wholegrain carbs, which will release more slowly and stop the insulin spike.
If you must go white, add peanut butter to make the release of glucose slower and more effective.
Juices
These ‘healthy’ drinks contain just as much sugar as the fruit they are made from, but none of the pulp or skin which contains most of the fibre.
So juices can also spike your blood sugar levels. Blend the fruit with its skin, and mix in a scoop of protein powder or nut butter to help boost satiety.
Crisps
Packed full of salt and quick-digesting simple carbs, crisps can also lead to a sugar rush. It’s common to have a craving for something sweet just after polishing off a salty snack.
Mitzi Dulan, author of The Pinterest Diet:L How to Pin Your Way To Thin, believes it's because your salty stomach can feel full when your sweet tummy is still hungry.
This means you’ll be tempted to eat two stomach’s worth of food.
Burgers
Almost every ingredient behind the fast food counter is designed to tempt you to supersize your meal.
Trans fat inflames your gut, and can reduce your body’s ability to produce appetite-controlling dopamine and serotonin.
While high fructose corn syrup, which is often found in buns, sauces and desserts, can cause hunger pans.
Then the saltiness makes you more dehydrated. When you need a drink, it’s easy to mistake these feelings for hunger.
Alcohol
Alcohol doesn’t just make you less inclined to eat healthier, it also brings on the hunger.
According to research in Alcohol & Alcoholism, three drinks can slash your body’s level of leptin – a hormone which is meant to squash your hunger and keep you feeling full.
Booze can also deplete your body’s carb stores (glycogen) making you crave carbs.
Chinese takeaways
MSG is a flavour enhancer, often added to Chinese food, canned vegetables, soup, processed meats, beer and ice cream.
The chemical is thought to trigger up to a 40 per cent increase in appetite – and the effect adds up over time, meaning the more you munch on MSG, the more you’ll eat every day.
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Sushi
You may think you’re loading up on fish, but the rolls are mainly made from rice. They’re very quickly digested, because of the low level of protein and fibre.
Kids’ cereals
They contain sugar by the bucket load, causing a insulin and carbohydrate overload.
Your body pumps out cortisol overnight, which makes it harder for your body to metabolise ingested sugar.
Cereal can still be a smart way to start your day, but opt for wholegrain or bran instead.
Pizza
There’s a reason that you can never just eat one slice, and it’s not just how good pizza tastes.
The combination of white flour dough, oil, processed cheese and preservatives will confuse your stomach and the hunger-regulating parts of your brain.
But if you make your pizza at home and top it with lean meat, veggies and just a sprinkling of cheese – you’ll be less likely to be tucking into a cold slice in an hour.