Knowing When to Eat

If you were told that by eating certain foods, your body would gain weight or become healthier, wouldn’t you be curious to know which foods help you lose weight? Most people would probably tell you that they don’t know. And, if asked why they didn’t know, they might tell you that they just didn’t know. However, the truth is that most people don’t know a whole lot about the foods that they eat, much less the best foods to eat to help your body lose weight. This article explains what your body needs to eat in order to gain or lose weight healthily and naturally.

According to the latest scientific research, our metabolism actually burns more calories than the food we eat. Food is simply any substance ingested to give your body basic nutrition. Food is generally of animal, plant or fungi origin, and includes essential vitamins, minerals, proteins or carbohydrates. It follows that to lose weight, you must take in the right quantity of the right type of substances in the right quantity at the right time.

Almost all of us, except for some vegetarians, will eat a meal with carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are divided into two categories, simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are found in fruits and vegetables and are usually called “soft” carbs. These food types are digested quickly and leave almost no effect on our blood sugar levels.

Complex carbohydrates consist of starches and are found in grains, cereals, potatoes, beans, and legumes. These food types are digested more slowly and can cause spikes in our blood glucose levels when eating them. Therefore, they result in fuller feelings and therefore are often referred to as “slow-moving food”. The good thing about complex carbohydrates is that they are used by the body almost 100% of the time. Therefore, the body does not experience any cravings between meals.

Fatty foods are another source of unneeded energy for the body. Our brain uses up fat calories to perform functions such as walking, thinking, and processing information. When we eat food, our brain sends signals to the stomach and digestive tract to release hormones that enable it to empty the stomach of food. Although eating fats may make you hungry, the brain is not requiring the additional energy.

Finally, there is a very important difference between overeating and not eating enough. Overeating is when you eat more than you normally would, while not eating enough is when you eat too little. Many dieters who are severely restricting their food intake actually feel worse when they eat less than they normally do. The brain continues to operate at a reduced level because it does not receive the necessary signal from the stomach to digest the food properly. Thus, overconsumption of food causes the brain to feel bad, which in turn causes the body to have uncomfortable feelings, which contribute to hunger.