Latest news with #caloricintake
News.com.au
03-06-2025
- Health
- News.com.au
This single change to your food can help you eat less overall
Red hot skinny peppers? Scientists at Penn State University's Sensory Evaluation Center have discovered that a little heat goes a long way in limiting caloric intake at meal times. Their findings, slated to be published in the October issue of Food Quality and Preference, suggest that the 'oral burn' left by spicy foods has a direct bearing on consumption habits, and adding slightly more spice to a meal can lead to eating less. 'We know from previous studies that when people slow down, they eat significantly less,' said Paige Cunningham, a postdoctoral researcher and lead author on the study who earned her doctorate in nutritional sciences from Penn State in 2023. 'We suspected that making a meal spicier might slow people down.' 'We thought, let's test, under controlled experimental conditions in the lab, if adding a small amount of spice, but not so much that the meal is inedible, will make people eat slower and therefore eat less.' The research team conducted three experiments in which participants were served one of two meals: beef chilli or chicken tikka masala in two versions, mild or spicy. Researchers found that increasing spice levels using dried chilli pepper effectively slowed the eating rate and reduced the amount consumed without affecting overall palatability. 'This points to added chillies as a potential strategy for reducing the risk of energy overconsumption,' said John Hayes, Penn State professor of food science and corresponding author on the paper. 'While portion control wasn't the explicit goal of this study, our results suggest this might work.' Hayes noted that an intuitive explanation for the caloric discrepancy would be that spicy eaters drank more water, leading them to 'fill up' faster. However, water intake proved consistent, whether participants ate mild or spicy meals. 'This is why we need to do empirical studies of behaviour, because what you might intuitively expect is often not the case,' he said. The study suggests that reduced caloric intake is motivated by oral processing; in essence, participants consumed spicier meals at a slower rate. Cunningham noted that a slower eating rate equates to food remaining in the mouth for a longer period of time, which can signal satiety and lead people to eat less. Further, the team found that appetite ratings taken before and after the meals were congruent, indicating that despite eating less of it, participants felt full after tucking into a spicy meal. 'Next time you're looking to eat a little less, try adding a blast of chillies, as it may slow you down and help you eat less,' suggested Hayes. In addition to curbing cravings, eating spicy food is associated with a pepper patch of health benefits. Studies suggest that capsaicin, the compound found in jalapeños, habaneras, cayenne, and most other chilli peppers, may lower LDL, or bad, cholesterol, which accumulates on artery walls and constricts blood flow to the heart. Spicy food can also help dilate blood vessels, promote circulation, and help manage blood sugar. A 2006 study in the journal Cancer suggested capsaicin may inhibit the spread of prostate cancer cells. Spicy foods also boost immunity as studies suggest they can act as a decongestant, protecting against irritants and pollutants, like dust and smoke. Better yet and better for your health, a Harvard University study suggested that people who ate spicy food every day saw a 14 per cent lower risk of death compared to people who ate spicy food only once a week or less.
The Sun
23-05-2025
- Health
- The Sun
The £2 ingredient to add to meals if want to cut back on calories – as scientists show it can make you eat less
THROWING a little heat on your meal could be an effective strategy for cutting back on calories, say scientists. Increasing "oral burn" - the feeling you get when you eat spicy food - has been found to impact how much people consume during a meal. In a new study led by Penn State, researchers demonstrated how adding spicy ingredients like chilli peppers to meals causes people eating less and consume fewer calories. "We know from previous studies that when people slow down, they eat significantly less," said Paige Cunningham, a postdoctoral researcher and lead author on the study. "We suspected that making a meal spicier might slow people down. "We thought, let's test, under controlled experimental conditions in the lab, if adding a small amount of spice, but not so much that the meal is inedible, will make people eat slower and therefore eat less." The researchers found increasing spiciness just slightly using dried chilli pepper slowed down eating and reduced the amount of food and energy consumed at a meal - all without negatively affecting the taste of the dish. "This points to added chillies as a potential strategy for reducing the risk of energy overconsumption," said John Hayes, Penn State professor of food science and corresponding author on the paper. "While portion control wasn't the explicit goal of this study, our results suggest this might work. "Next time you're looking to eat a little less, try adding a blast of chillies, as it may slow you down and help you eat less." The team carried out three related experiments which involved 130 adults who were served one of two lunch meals - beef chilli or chicken tikka masala. Both these dishes came in one or two versions - mild or spicy. I lost almost a stone in just six days and here's the exact list of delicious meals I ate which never left me hungry The spiciness level was controlled by carefully varying the ratio of hot versus sweet paprika added to the dishes to vary the heat while keeping the chilli flavour constant. Participants were then recorded on high-definition video while they ate their meals to monitor their behaviours - including how much food and water they consumed, meal duration, and eating speed of grams per minute. The researchers also recorded bite rate, bite size, and collected ratings on appetite, liking and spiciness before and after the meal. "Formulating the recipes took a long time for the chicken tikka," Cunningham said. "It took so many rounds of testing that my lab mates were sick of it. "But science is about trial and error. I'd make a recipe, see how far I could push the spiciness, and we'd taste it. 2 "We did that until we reached a level where palatability was matched even when spiciness increased." Slower eating rate often means food is in the mouth longer, which can help signal fullness and lead to eating less, she explained. Other studies have slowed eating rate by manipulating texture, and similar effects have been observed. "What's critical here is that the reduction in intake occurred without negatively impacting how much participants liked the food," Hayes said. Water intake didn't differ significantly between spicy and mild meals, which showed that drinking more water and filling up faster wasn't a primary reason people ate less. Hayes also noted that appetite ratings made before and after the meals were similar, suggesting participants still felt full after the spicy meal, despite eating less of it. The team is now looking to understand how oral burn can impact other eating behaviours like snacking. Whole dried birds eye chillies can be bought for as little as £2 from Tesco.
