Will chewing food less slow its energy release?
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Larissa_NY wrote: »I'm pretty sure that eating like a fat person is not the way to get thin.
That's a lot of truism in this statement.
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Larissa_NY wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »Larissa_NY wrote: »Have you ever watched an obese person eat? The ones who are like the obese people in my family, at any rate, inhale food like they just want it to sort of wave at their taste buds in passing. Chew once or twice, bam, down the hatch to make room for the next bite. My mother and grandmother could clean their plates and go back for refills while my aunt was still halfway through and my cousins and I were still working on the meatloaf. In order of degree of obesity, we ranked (grandmother & mother) > (aunt) > (me and my cousins).
If your theory were correct, fat people who eat like my mother should be as thin as rails. I can't imagine chewing my food a hundred times, because ew, but I'm pretty sure that eating like a fat person is not the way to get thin.
I inhale my food. Always have. I stop when I have eaten enough.
"Eating like a fat person" does not mean eating quickly. Eating too much is why we get fat.
Eating too fast and eating too much go hand in hand. You know you've eaten enough when your body starts sending you hormonal signals that you've eaten enough, and that takes time. There's a reason eating slowly helps a lot of people lose weight, and it's not because there are a ton of people in the habit of swallowing their bites whole and then waiting long enough between bites to tell if they're full or not.
If we're exchanging anecdata, I have never seen a thin person who wasn't a teenage boy inhale their food, and I have never seen a non-dieting obese person who didn't. So until someone breaks out the actual empirical data on eating speed, my anecdata are just as good as your anecdote.
hmmm, someone should tell my husband. His plate is usually empty by the time I get to sit down to eat and he is thin. I on the other hand am the one usually still sitting at the table eating my dinner while everyone else is getting seconds or dessert and I am 60 lbs over weight, I have never inhaled my food.
It's clearly a big lie that the average woman is a size 14, because I'm only a size 8 and my best friend is a size 10.2 -
Larissa_NY wrote: »StealthHealth wrote: »Cherimoose wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »"Eating like a fat person" does not mean eating quickly.
Here's an interesting study on buffet patrons that disagrees.Patrons with higher levels of BMI were more likely to be associated with using larger plates vs. smaller plates (OR 1.16, P < 0.01) and facing the buffet vs. side or back (OR 1.10, P < 0.001). Patrons with higher levels of BMI were less likely to be associated with using chopsticks vs. forks (OR 0.90,P < 0.05), browsing the buffet before eating vs. serving themselves immediately (OR 0.92, P < 0.001), and having a napkin on their lap vs. not having a napkin on their lap (OR 0.92, P < 0.01). Patrons with lower BMIs left more food on their plates (10.6% vs. 6.0%, P < 0.05) and chewed more per bite of food (14.8 vs. 11.9, P < 0.001).
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18670421
And another one...Compared with lean participants, obese participants had a higher ingestion rate and a lower number of chews per 1 g of food. However, obese participants had a bite size similar to that of lean subjects.
Regardless of status, the subjects ingested 11.9% less after 40 chews than after 15 chews. Compared with 15 chews, 40 chews resulted in lower energy intake and postprandial ghrelin concentration and higher postprandial glucagon-like peptide 1 and cholecystokinin concentrations in both lean and obese subjects.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21775556
That second one showed that chewing slower led to fewer calories consumed.
But those studies are eating ad lib. That is not applicable to the MFP sub set who calorie track.
In other words, If it takes you 3 nano seconds to inhale your calorie controlled lunch it's the same as it taking 30 mins.
Having said that, if you're attempting to move to intuitive eating, then this sort of approach would be useful.
Yes, of course, but that's not what anyone was talking about. The OP's post wasn't about calorie counting, it was about whether or not chewing your food less would somehow make you absorb fewer calories from it. The post this one is responding to was about whether chewing less was associated with eating more. Eating a calorie-controlled meal is a different topic altogether.
The whole discussion was posted on a discussion forum, which is part of a web site, of which one of the main features is calorie counting. The OP was generally about a perceived technique to reduce calorie intake. Because of these two factors I thought it was a pretty reasonable to point out the calorie counting aspect of MFP. But, next time I'm involved in a discussion that you're involved I'll drop you a pm with my intended posts so you can double check that it meets your standards?6 -
Asher_Ethan wrote: »My understanding (and someone correct me if I'm wrong) is chewing your food slowly is just another way to trick yourself into being in a calorie deficit.
It'll take you an hour to eat your oatmeal instead of 10 minutes, by the end of the hour you're bored and you want to do something else instead of counting how much you chew.
Ya, if I'm eating mindlessly I can easily polish off a 450 calorie chocolate bar, but if I take 70 calories worth of chocolate chips and let them slowly dissolve in my mouth one by one I am bored with chocolate by the time I'm done with them, which can take up to 45 minutes.1 -
In my non-expert opinion, no.
Why would you think barely chewing your food will slow down your body's ability to get nutrients/energy from said food?
Well, the digestive system would have to work harder and for much longer on breaking down a whole nut or seed than it would on a puree nut etc wouldn't it?0 -
StealthHealth wrote: »Nope: If anything chewing will increase energy absorption speed*. For example, the sugars in blended fruit drinks are released faster because the blending breaks up the fiber chains, making the drink a mix of shorter length fiber chains (complex carb chains reduce absorption speeds of simple sugars).
* note that the total energy released will be the same - it's just the speed of absorption.
The concept of chewing more to eat less is, I believe, related to the fact that slower eaters tend to eat less because their "I'm full" signalling (Ghrelin suppression?) kicks in before they have crammed the whole meal down their pie hole.
Yes, that was another factor I took into account. Also though, chewing stimulates the digestive system. Surely that also affects absorption rate.0 -
TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »In my non-expert opinion, no.
Why would you think barely chewing your food will slow down your body's ability to get nutrients/energy from said food?
Well, the digestive system would have to work harder and for much longer on breaking down a whole nut or seed than it would on a puree nut etc wouldn't it?TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »StealthHealth wrote: »Nope: If anything chewing will increase energy absorption speed*. For example, the sugars in blended fruit drinks are released faster because the blending breaks up the fiber chains, making the drink a mix of shorter length fiber chains (complex carb chains reduce absorption speeds of simple sugars).
* note that the total energy released will be the same - it's just the speed of absorption.
The concept of chewing more to eat less is, I believe, related to the fact that slower eaters tend to eat less because their "I'm full" signalling (Ghrelin suppression?) kicks in before they have crammed the whole meal down their pie hole.
Yes, that was another factor I took into account. Also though, chewing stimulates the digestive system. Surely that also affects absorption rate.
All joking aside, I see your point and train of thought, but quite frankly its wrong to think that it is in any way significant.
The only food that might be worth considering are foods that have a non-digestible skin that remains intact - like a kernel of corn or a nut with the skin on it. It will be OBVIOUS, when it comes out, that your body didn't digest it. If you want to dig through and find those parts and remove them from your log, more power to you.
Furthermore, as far as chewing expending energy versus your gut doing the work, again, insignificant. Chewing is mechanical work - like walking - I guess you could log it, but... small muscles under little load... The gut is both muscular and chemical, but this is included in your RMR.
You can think what you want, but you are simply making claims with no basis and worrying about things that don't matter.
Go to a 30 minute walk, think about digestion, and you'll burn more calories in that time that you will eating your food - chewing or not.
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markrgeary1 wrote: »Given your stomach acids can dissolve concrete and metal I don't believe it would do anything.
But not tomato seeds and sweetcorn. I imagine it would have effect on high calorie things such as seeds that are very difficult for the body to break into. Without being first ground up by the teeth, these often go straight through the system to plant themselves in the compost we poo out. It's their very purpose. If you ground them into flour and made bread etc, the body gets a lot more of their available calories, and at a much faster rate. There is a perfect example of what I mean. So if I chewed up the tomato seeds that would be digested instead of going through untouched. If I chewed a nut into paste, surely that would digest quicker than if I hardly chewed it. Also, you'd have bits of nuts in your poo, untouched and not absorbed.0 -
TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »markrgeary1 wrote: »Given your stomach acids can dissolve concrete and metal I don't believe it would do anything.
But not tomato seeds and sweetcorn. I imagine it would have effect on high calorie things such as seeds that are very difficult for the body to break into. Without being first ground up by the teeth, these often go straight through the system to plant themselves in the compost we poo out. It's their very purpose. If you ground them into flour and made bread etc, the body gets a lot more of their available calories, and at a much faster rate. There is a perfect example of what I mean. So if I chewed up the tomato seeds that would be digested instead of going through untouched. If I chewed a nut into paste, surely that would digest quicker than if I hardly chewed it. Also, you'd have bits of nuts in your poo, untouched and not absorbed.
but what is the point of eating it if I don't get anything out of it. Swallowing nuts whole (I even feel dirty typing that...) sounds miserable, pooping chunks sounds worse, and at that point it isn't even food anymore.
I can eat plastic, too, but I'm not going to.2 -
TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »StealthHealth wrote: »Nope: If anything chewing will increase energy absorption speed*. For example, the sugars in blended fruit drinks are released faster because the blending breaks up the fiber chains, making the drink a mix of shorter length fiber chains (complex carb chains reduce absorption speeds of simple sugars).
* note that the total energy released will be the same - it's just the speed of absorption.
The concept of chewing more to eat less is, I believe, related to the fact that slower eaters tend to eat less because their "I'm full" signalling (Ghrelin suppression?) kicks in before they have crammed the whole meal down their pie hole.
Yes, that was another factor I took into account. Also though, chewing stimulates the digestive system. Surely that also affects absorption rate.
Rate, speed, call it what you want it doesn't affect the total calories absorbed.0 -
Larissa_NY wrote: »CorneliusPhoton wrote: »Larissa_NY wrote: »Have you ever watched an obese person eat? The ones who are like the obese people in my family, at any rate, inhale food like they just want it to sort of wave at their taste buds in passing. Chew once or twice, bam, down the hatch to make room for the next bite. My mother and grandmother could clean their plates and go back for refills while my aunt was still halfway through and my cousins and I were still working on the meatloaf. In order of degree of obesity, we ranked (grandmother & mother) > (aunt) > (me and my cousins).
If your theory were correct, fat people who eat like my mother should be as thin as rails. I can't imagine chewing my food a hundred times, because ew, but I'm pretty sure that eating like a fat person is not the way to get thin.
I inhale my food. Always have. I stop when I have eaten enough.
"Eating like a fat person" does not mean eating quickly. Eating too much is why we get fat.
Eating too fast and eating too much go hand in hand. You know you've eaten enough when your body starts sending you hormonal signals that you've eaten enough, and that takes time. There's a reason eating slowly helps a lot of people lose weight, and it's not because there are a ton of people in the habit of swallowing their bites whole and then waiting long enough between bites to tell if they're full or not.
If we're exchanging anecdata, I have never seen a thin person who wasn't a teenage boy inhale their food, and I have never seen a non-dieting obese person who didn't. So until someone breaks out the actual empirical data on eating speed, my anecdata are just as good as your anecdote.
hmmm, someone should tell my husband. His plate is usually empty by the time I get to sit down to eat and he is thin. I on the other hand am the one usually still sitting at the table eating my dinner while everyone else is getting seconds or dessert and I am 60 lbs over weight, I have never inhaled my food.
Someone should tell your husband to wait until everyone is sat down before he starts eating and to wait until everyone has finished their main before moving on to dessert.
As to the OP, I have heard the whole, put down your knife and fork between bites, gives you a chance to enjoy the food and for the body to get a chance to signal when it's full.
personally it has never done anything for me, slow or quick, my body never seems to register full.2 -
TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »In my non-expert opinion, no.
Why would you think barely chewing your food will slow down your body's ability to get nutrients/energy from said food?
Well, the digestive system would have to work harder and for much longer on breaking down a whole nut or seed than it would on a puree nut etc wouldn't it?
Most of the digestive process is chemical and enzyme driven - I don't think that these lead to an energy use for the human host/vessel?0 -
I was a fast eater all my life. As a part of trying to revolutionize my eating habits I deliberately slower down my eating and it does make a difference in feeling satiated well before I'm about to explode. Used to be I'd wait for my stomach to feel physically full now it's more of being satisfied and not feeling hungry anymore. Like anything else, if you repeat your new habit over and over it becomes the new norm and you don't have to think about it any more.
I do believe it can make a difference in how your body processes food as well. Without getting too graphic, it's not hard to see the difference when it comes out the other end between food thoroughly masticated and food not fully chewed
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StealthHealth wrote: »TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »In my non-expert opinion, no.
Why would you think barely chewing your food will slow down your body's ability to get nutrients/energy from said food?
(gif snipped by later reply-er, for length)
Well, the digestive system would have to work harder and for much longer on breaking down a whole nut or seed than it would on a puree nut etc wouldn't it?
Most of the digestive process is chemical and enzyme driven - I don't think that these lead to an energy use for the human host/vessel?
Your body has to make those chemicals and enzymes. Ever see a chemical factory that doesn't require energy inputs?
Frankly, even so I think this whole line of discussion is bizarre. Why not simply eat foods high in fiber, and low in calories, and chew like a normal person? The fiber's largely indigestible.
And fiber's good for you. I can't believe that swallowing big chunky stuff as a regular routine, intended to pass through one's system as chunks, would be beneficial to the digestive system in the long run, and might be destructive.
One option: Just eat high-low cal veggies, and lots of them. It doesn't satiate everyone on low cals, but it works for a lot of people. If you don't believe me, go read this thread for giggles:
10 a Day (800g) Veggie&Fruit Challenge Participants Check in!1 -
CorneliusPhoton wrote: »If you swallow a porterhouse whole, it will likely have to sit in your stomach a little while longer than fruit juice.
Or you'll choke and die. Just sayin'... 0 -
No.0
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Honestly, if you're old enough to read and still don't know to chew your food, bless your heart.1
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StealthHealth wrote: »TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »In my non-expert opinion, no.
Why would you think barely chewing your food will slow down your body's ability to get nutrients/energy from said food?
(gif snipped by later reply-er, for length)
Well, the digestive system would have to work harder and for much longer on breaking down a whole nut or seed than it would on a puree nut etc wouldn't it?
Most of the digestive process is chemical and enzyme driven - I don't think that these lead to an energy use for the human host/vessel?
Your body has to make those chemicals and enzymes. Ever see a chemical factory that doesn't require energy inputs?
Frankly, even so I think this whole line of discussion is bizarre. Why not simply eat foods high in fiber, and low in calories, and chew like a normal person? The fiber's largely indigestible.
And fiber's good for you. I can't believe that swallowing big chunky stuff as a regular routine, intended to pass through one's system as chunks, would be beneficial to the digestive system in the long run, and might be destructive.
One option: Just eat high-low cal veggies, and lots of them. It doesn't satiate everyone on low cals, but it works for a lot of people. If you don't believe me, go read this thread for giggles:
10 a Day (800g) Veggie&Fruit Challenge Participants Check in!
Good point... I'd not thought of that.0 -
StealthHealth wrote: »StealthHealth wrote: »TerryMyfitbitsnbobs wrote: »In my non-expert opinion, no.
Why would you think barely chewing your food will slow down your body's ability to get nutrients/energy from said food?
(gif snipped by later reply-er, for length)
Well, the digestive system would have to work harder and for much longer on breaking down a whole nut or seed than it would on a puree nut etc wouldn't it?
Most of the digestive process is chemical and enzyme driven - I don't think that these lead to an energy use for the human host/vessel?
Your body has to make those chemicals and enzymes. Ever see a chemical factory that doesn't require energy inputs?
Frankly, even so I think this whole line of discussion is bizarre. Why not simply eat foods high in fiber, and low in calories, and chew like a normal person? The fiber's largely indigestible.
And fiber's good for you. I can't believe that swallowing big chunky stuff as a regular routine, intended to pass through one's system as chunks, would be beneficial to the digestive system in the long run, and might be destructive.
One option: Just eat high-low cal veggies, and lots of them. It doesn't satiate everyone on low cals, but it works for a lot of people. If you don't believe me, go read this thread for giggles:
10 a Day (800g) Veggie&Fruit Challenge Participants Check in!
Good point... I'd not thought of that.
That is part of your BMR, so its already accounted for.0 -
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