I recently began eating breakfast because I read that a morning meal speeds weight loss. But despite a bowl of oatmeal and a midmorning snack of fruit, I’m ravenous by lunchtime. I end up scarfing everything in sight all afternoon. It’s no wonder I’ve gained 12 pounds this month! Should I stop eating breakfast?
A morning meal stabilizes blood sugar and helps women eat about 100 fewer calories daily, so keep enjoying breakfast. The fact that you’re starving by lunchtime suggest that your internal body clock need a little rewiring. Brain levels of cholecystokinin (CCK) and glucagons, hormones that signal satiation, plunge before noon, triggering an urge to overeat. But you can outsmart this body clock snafu by adding a handful of nuts or two tablespoons of peanut butter to your morning meal. UCLA scientists discovered that nut proteins pump up levels of CCK and glucagons in as little as 20 minutes and keep them elevated for hours. The result: no more between-meal hunger, plus you’ll need less food to feel satiated when it is time to eat.
