Home Remedies For Appetite Control

When beginning a weight loss program, often the most difficult challenge is overeating due to feelings of hunger. Consuming low-calorie, healthy food often does not provide the feeling of satiety, or fullness. Some dieters may turn to prescription or over-the-counter weight loss pills that can often have deleterious side effects. However, simple remedies can be utilized at home in order to help control appetite and provide a feeling of fullness.

Psyllium Fiber

One home remedy to control appetite and avoid overeating is to eat foods that contain fiber. Fiber can help convey of feeling of fullness in the stomach because it absorbs water. It also affects peptide hormones in the gut so you feel full longer. In fact, peptide hormones released from the gut are among the most important factors to control appetite and satiety. These gut peptides--pancreatic polypeptides, oxyntomodulin, ghrelin, cholecystokinin, peptide YY and glucagon-like peptide type-1--influence eating behavior and thus, weight gain or loss.

Psyllium, an ingredient in certain cereals and supplements, contains both soluble and insoluble fibers. A study in theApril 2010 issue of The Journal of Nutrition reported that "meals enriched with psyllium fiber strongly modified peptide release in the GI tract." Therefore, eating foods fortified with psyllium or taking a psyllium supplement is an easy home remedy to help with appetite control.

Proteins

Ingestion of protein also activates satiety pathways. Protein and amino acids are more potent than carbohydrate and fat fir inducing fullness. Healthy proteins include hard-boiled eggs, nuts, beans and small pieces of chicken. Eating small protein snacks throughout the day can help with appetite control. Try eating a hard-boiled egg as a mid-morning snack to help limit the amount of food consumed at lunch. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reported in 2005 that a "high protein diet induces sustained reduction in appetite." In addition to eating food sources of protein, adding whey protein to juice or smoothies can help with appetite control. A 2006 study in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism revealed that consuming whey can help reduce food intake.

Skim Milk

In 2009, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition noted that "consumption of skim milk leads to increased perceptions of satiety and to decreased energy intake at a subsequent meal." In addition to eating small protein snacks, drinking a glass of milk between meals can help with appetite control. To prevent overeating at dinner, drink an 8-oz. glass of skim milk one to two hours beforehand. You can also add whey to skim milk to increase the feeling of fullness. On days when the feelings of hunger seem overwhelming, drinking several glass of milk throughout the day will help prevent stomach growling.

Chewing Gum

Home remedies for controlling appetite do not always involve eating or drinking certain foods. Rather, altering behavior can help prevent overeating. For example, chewing gum can influence the perception of hunger and fullness. After eating lunch, typically hunger increases steadily throughout the afternoon. By chewing gum, you help subdue the rise in hunger. The desire to eat sweet and salty snacks also increases in the afternoon. Chewing gum, including sugar-free gum, can limit sweet and salt cravings.

Exercise

Like fiber and proteins, exercise controls appetite by affecting certain peptide hormones. However, it is important to note that while some exercise decreases appetite, other types of exercise can actually increase appetite. For example, swimming often increases hunger while performing a few sit-ups reduces hunger. As a rule of thumb, the higher the intensity of the workout, the higher is increase in hunger. Therefore, low-intensity or moderate-intensity exercising is recommended in order to boost hormones that suppress appetite. In 2009, The Journal of Endocrinology reported that "moderate intensity exercise can change hormone levels in the gut." Moderate intensity exercises include walking, bicycling slower than 10 miles per hour, doubles tennis or ballroom dancing. Vigorous intensity exercises, meanwhile, include swimming, running, dance aerobics or jumping rope. It is important to note that performing high-intensity workouts can help burn off calories and increase the likelihood of weight loss. However, if the goal is to stave off a feeling of hunger for 30 minutes to an hour, a light walk or bike ride will do the trick.