By Joanne Chen
At least that what rat studies show so far. When scientists at Florida State University prevented male and female rats from exercising while serving up sweet-and-fatty condensed milk along with the usual chow, the females consumed 35 percent more calories than they usually did. Males consumed only 15 percent more. Next, they allowed for exercise. When that happened, the guy rats returned to normal caloric intakes, while women decreased their caloric consumption by only 20 percent. Experts suspect the fondness for rich, sweet treats has something to do with women’s hormonal makeup—specifically, a form of estrogen called estradiol.
7. Your sugarless snack may be intensifying your sweet tooth.
Ever think the more diligent you are at controlling your sugar intake, the more you want sugar? Some scientists think that artificial sweeteners and fat-free foods may be the reason. Susie Swithers, at Purdue University, believes that the taste and texture of food affect our appetites. A real-fat and real-sugar snack turns on a switch that programs our body to keep track of how much is eaten. When the treat lacks that sweetness and richness, that mechanism doesn’t get turned on, and so the body fails to keep a tally on what’s been consumed. Other scientists believe that the sweet cravings crescendo because the fake-sugar doesn’t trigger an insulin response, and insulin is what tells us we’re full. Still others believe that the cravings simply don’t emerge in the first place and that fake sugar is indeed a helpful aid in weight loss. The truth probably lies somewhere in between, but appetite mechanisms are so complex, it’s unclear whether we’ll ever find a final explanation.
8. Giving up one 12-ounce can of soda each day can lead to a loss of 14 and a half pounds a year.
Scientists have found that beverages don’t contribute to the feeling of satiety as solids do. Having a 140-calorie cup of yogurt will make you feel fuller than drinking a 140-calorie can (12 oz) of soda. As a result, we tend to over-consume liquids. Drink water with one meal every day instead of a can of soda, and chances are you won’t even miss the soft drink from a hunger standpoint. Because it takes a reduction of 3,500 calories to equal one lost pound, you’ll lose more than 14 pounds in one year if you maintain that switch—even if you do nothing else to improve your exercise and diet regimen.
9. There’s a reason why chocolate didn’t catch on earlier in Asia—and the reason is tea.
Before chocolate was a bar or a flavor for cake, it was a hot beverage created by the Native Americans in Mexico. The Europeans (whom at the time were still new to coffee and tea) took to it as luxurious drink, and only later did the French and others make it into a dessert. But in Asia, tea was an age-old tradition filled with ritual, and the Chinese and Japanese in particular found no reason to switch to chocolate. The only exception: the Philippines, which, at the time, was ruled by Spaniards.
10. Seeing is eating.
It makes sense that if the food is out of reach, you eat less of it. But it also makes a difference whether you can see that food or not. It turns out, any hint of our favorite foods—whether it’s reading the word or seeing it in front of us—will excite the parts of our brain associated with cravings. Brian Wansink at Cornell University gave unsuspecting volunteers 30 chocolate Kisses; some received them in opaque bowls, others, glass ones. Half those bowls were placed within arm’s reach; the rest were left two meters away. The subjects with the opaque bowls nearby consumed 4.4 pieces each day; those with the clear bowls nearby ate 7.6. Over the course of the eight-day experiment, the subjects with the clear bowls nearby consumed 6,200 more calories compared to those with the opaque bowls placed two meters away. << Read Facts 1-5
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Biography
Joanne Chen is a writer in New York City. She has covered health, nutrition, and food as an editor at Life and Vogue, and her writing has appeared in the New York Times, Food & Wine, Health, and other publications. She keeps chocolate at her desk at all times.
