With the abundance of food and drink options in today’s society, it’s easier than ever to overeat.
That full feeling you experience after eating is called the “satiety feeling.” Understanding how it works can help you control how much you eat on your journey to healthy living.
Contrary to popular belief, satiety is not caused by your stomach holding its maximum capacity. It is actually caused by a number of chemical reactions in the body that starts the moment you consume food. Hormone signals are released in response to the digestion and absorption of nutrients. Other hormones tell the body how much fat we have stored. All these signals inform the part of the brain that regulates energy intake, which then leads to the feeling of satiety.
Even though we can feel our stomach expanding as we eat, it can take 15 to 20 minutes for all the body signals to reach the brain. After that time, satiety is experienced. Chemical reaction levels continue to rise for 10 to 30 minutes and stay elevated for the next three to five hours, keeping you feeling full. As your chemical levels fall, the feeling of hunger returns.
- If you don’t feel full after 20 minutes, wait. As chemical levels continue to rise your hunger should disintegrate.
- Listen to your body and pay attention to how your stomach feels when it is hungry and then how it feels after drinking water. You may just be thirsty instead of hungry.
- When you eat, focus on how your stomach feels throughout your entire meal. When you are full you should have pressure on your stomach but still feel light and energetic. If your fullness is uncomfortable or painful, you’ve overeaten.
To help control how much you eat, try drinking a glass of water before meals to help your stomach feel fuller faster. Then drink another glass of water with your meal, drinking between bites to slow your eating. If you’re tired of plain water, jazz it up with slices of lemon, lime or cucumber. Or try one of the Medifast Flavor Infusers to add taste and even burn calories while you drink!
Corporate culture is to scarf food at our desk while working…which makes it challenging to pay attention to the saiety trigger. I like the idea of drinking a full glass of water right before my meal and in between bites to slow me down. This allows me to still eat and work at my desk but remind me to stop eating when full. Thanks for the tip.
Pls correct spelling to satiety. Thanks.