Nutrition and Fitness

10 tips to avoid overeating 

1. Keep leptin and ghrelin levels balanced –

Keep saturated fat intake balanced because a diet too high in saturated fat may lead to leptin resistance. Eating a diet of wholegrain carbohydrates and high quality protein will help keep ghrelin levels balanced. Sleep is also crucial for keeping leptin and ghrelin levels balanced.

2. Avoid fructose from added sugars –

Studies have found that fructose may interfere with our ability to control our appetite and could increase the likelihood of weight gain. This is because fructose does not need insulin to be transported into the liver to be broken down to produce energy – this in turn reduces the levels of the appetite-control hormone leptin. Also, fructose lowers malonyl-CoA, which is an appetite-suppressing molecule in the brain. This may explain why some sweeteners that are high in fructose, can fail to make us feel full even though we are consuming lots of extra calories.

3. Limit stress –

Stress has been implicated as a primary trigger of overeating. Cortisol (the stress hormone) has been shown to be a factor in increased energy intake in individuals. Over consumption of comfort foods, which are high in fat and carbohydrates, may be stimulated by cortisol in response to stress, which can result in abdominal obesity. Persistently, elevated levels of cortisol can promote insulin resistance, and in turn activate abdominal fat storage.

4. Eat slowly – 

It’s important to chew your food slowly because slow chewing can suppress ghrelin release. Eating too fast can lead to overeating because you are not giving your brain enough time to process that you’re full.

5. Drink water between meals –

Dehydration can be easily confused with hunger.  Drinking a glass of water between meals can help to curb your hunger by reducing ghrelin signals.

6. Don’t restrict yourself – 

It’s important to give yourself permission to eat any food you want and not restrict yourself. Following the 80/20 lifestyle daily, allowing 80% for whole nutritious foods and 20% for treats, will help stop you from overeating. Stop labelling foods as ‘good’ and ‘bad’ as this leads to food guilt and emotional eating. Instead, try and eat mindfully, being aware of what you’re eating.

7. Get enough sleep –

Getting enough sleep is important, because lack of sleep can increase ghrelin levels, which in turn increases appetite. Stimulating ghrelin levels will cause you to eat more and choose higher-calorie foods the next day.

8. Eat at similar times every day –

Skipping meals is never a good idea. When we restrict our calories and/or lose weight, our bodies interpret this as famine. In response, a mechanism is triggered to keep our weight constant. Our metabolism slows down and we feel hungry, so we eat more and this often leads to a binge. It’s important to still eat whole nutritious food when you’re not hungry, to avoid overeating at your next meal.

9. Eat whole nutritious foods –

When you’re eating real, whole, nutritious, unprocessed foods, your body will tell you when it’s full. When you eat unprocessed or sugary foods you won’t be filled up for long and will crave more to eat.

10. Serve correct portion sizes –

To avoid overeating, it’s a good idea to dish yourself a meal with the correct serving size. It’s best to dish less than more, as you won’t feel the need to finish what is on your plate. On the other hand, don’t eat too little causing you to crave sweet foods afterwards and overindulge.