There are no magical weight loss foods, despite the popularity of “fringe” diets like the cabbage soup diet where the main item on the menu is cabbage soup. On the other hand, there are foods you can add to a healthy diet that may give you a weight loss edge. Here are some surprising weight loss foods that actually have science behind them.
Weight Loss Foods: Prunes
Prunes aren’t just for constipation anymore. Researchers at the University of Liverpool found overweight participants that added dried prunes to a controlled, weight loss diet lost more weight over an 8 week period than those that went pruneless. They also lost more inches from their waistline. Prunes have lots of fiber to fill you up. As a bonus, they rank at the top of the ORAC scale that measures antioxidant activity. Fiber and lots of antioxidants – what’s not to love about prunes?
Weight Loss Foods: Mushrooms
Mushrooms – they’re very low in calories. A cup of button mushrooms has only 15 calories and 2 grams of protein. That’s good when it comes to controlling your weight – but mushrooms have other things going for them as well. Researchers at the University of Buffalo recently discovered mushrooms help with blood sugar control. When they added portabella mushroom powder to a glucose drink, it favorably affected glucose and insulin levels in women, but not men. This could help with weight loss.
Another mushroom study showed adults that substituted a cup of mushrooms for meat in their diet lost more weight, body fat, and inches from their waistline than those that didn’t. This study suggests substituting mushrooms for meat three times a week could help with weight control. For a “meaty” flavor, try grilling a portabella mushroom and putting it on a whole grain bun in place of a burger.
One word of warning. The best way to enjoy the benefits of mushrooms is to cook them. Raw mushrooms contain a compound called agaritine that’s a probable carcinogen. Cooking destroys this compound.
Weight Loss Foods: Apples
Substitute an apple for a cookie and you may lose weight. In a study published in Nutrition, researchers asked women to enjoy a snack three times a day – either a pear, an apple or an oat cookie. Those that ate an apple or a pear three times a day lost weight while women that munched on an oat cookie three times a day didn’t.
Apples are relatively high in natural sugar but they’re a good source of fiber including a fiber-like material called pectin that keeps hunger in check. You can enjoy the other benefits of eating apples too. In one study, women that ate 75 grams of dried apple daily enjoyed a 23% reduction in cholesterol and lost weight at the same time. Apples are a good source of anti-inflammatory polyphenols too.
Weight Loss Foods: Black Pepper
What if there was a natural compound that blocked the formation of new fat cells? If you’re watching your weight, you’d want more of it in your diet. Well, chances are you already have some in your kitchen. Bring on the black pepper! The same black pepper that’s in your salt and pepper shaker may help keep body fat in check. Researchers at Ui-Hyun Park of Sejong University in Seoul found an ingredient in black pepper called piperine blocked the activity of genes that turn on production of new fat cells. In a study carried out on rats, piperine was not only linked with weight loss but also a reduction in LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides. It was also associated with an increase in HDL-cholesterol, the “good” kind.
Weight Loss Foods: Pine Nuts
Want to make a salad more filling? Sprinkle pine nuts on top. An ingredient in Korean pine nuts called linoleic acid boosts levels of two appetite hormones called CCK and GLP-2. The oil from Korean pine nuts may do more than fill you up. In animal studies, pine nut oil reduced weight gain when the animals ate a high-fat diet. How do these appetite hormones work? They slow down stomach emptying so food stays in your stomach longer, keeping you satiated. An ounce of pine nuts (about 167 kernels) has 190 calories and 4 grams of protein. To bring out their flavor, roast them in the oven for 10 minutes until they turn golden.
The Bottom Line?
The best way to control your weight is to eat a clean diet of lean protein, healthy fats and lots of produce. There are no truly magical weight loss foods, adding these five foods to your diet may be helpful for controlling your appetite and calorie intake. Plus, each of these foods has other health benefits – so enjoy!
References:
EurekAlert.org. “Eating Prunes Can Help Weight Loss”
Stapleton’s. “Prunes Rank #1 in Antioxidant Activity”
FoodProductDesign.com. “Mushrooms May Aid Weight Loss, Especially for Women”
FASEB J. April 2013 27 (Meeting Abstract Supplement) 852.4.
Nutrition. 2003 Mar;19(3):253-6.
Science Daily. “‘Apple a Day Advice Rooted in Science”
WebMD. “Black Pepper May Help Fight Fat”
Indian J Pharmacol. 2011 May-Jun; 43(3): 296-299.
Science Daily. “Pine Nut Oil Boosts Appetite Suppressors Up To 60 Percent For 4 Hours”
Self Nutrition Data. “Pine Nuts”
NutritionFacts.org. “Toxins in Raw Mushrooms?”
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