For example, if I eat a small steak with 500 calories, will I feel full for longer than if I ate 10 rice cakes with 30 calories each?
In: 88
Bit of both. You feel hungry because your stomach is empty, but when it comes to filling it, it depends. You can divide calories into 3 categories:
* Protein – 4kcal/g, it builds muscle, bones. It takes time to digest and is filling because of it
* Fat – 9kcal/g, it carries flavour but is very calory dense. It can be filling, but it depends on the exact food.
* Carbohydrates – 4 kcal/g, it includes all sugars, and is the least filling of the three. It’s digested very quickly. Notice when you eat white bread, you salivate a lot. Your saliva already digests sugar before you even swallow it.
* Sidenote: why are fruits so healthy but have sugar? First of all, they don’t have as much as you think – e.g. watermelon is 6% sugar, 12%. Chocolate bars have as much as 60%. **Fibre**, also a carbohydrate, slows down the digestion, helping your blood carry the sugar better and the food stays in the stomach longer, making you feel full longer.
As you know, a chocolate bar has a lot of calories but won’t keep you full for long because it’s all sugar. However, a steak is mostly protein and fat, so will keep you for longer. Sounds common sense, right?
Liquids, like milk or soda, are also digested really quickly. So you could drink 3L of coke or milk but feel the need to eat almost immediately.
I also mentioned that empty stomach means hunger. What if you fill it with things that take up space but don’t have much calories? You’ll feel full! That’s why fruits, vegetables, rice cakes, etc. are really important when dieting and are recommended by nutritionists. You feel full without eating a lot of calories, making your weight loss adventure more pleasant.
Back to your question – will you feel full longer after a steak or 10 rice cakes? I think I’d feel full after the steak, thanks to the protein which takes time to digest.
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