Eat Less, More Often

For as long as I could remember the conventional advice around mealtimes was to eat three square meals a day, and avoid snacking. The square meals were presumably made up of portions of protein, starch, and some cellulose-rich food (veg or fruit) and they were always quite large, and the snacks, well they were verboten. Turns out, according to modern science headlines, all of this (or at least some of it) was dead wrong.

According to research done at the Imperial College in London, eating “little and often” is the optimum way to maintain blood sugar and keep energy levels at a constant. This new suggested meal plan would include up to nine meals a day (albeit small meals) without any snacking whatsoever. The study, which compared the diets of over 2000 people in the UK, China, Japan and the U.S. showed that those who ate fewer than 6 times per day had a significantly higher systolic blood pressure and were much fatter. Those who had the same caloric intake but consumed smaller amounts over the course of 6+ meals revealed better health and lower blood pressure. According to an article in the Daily Mail, eating at least four small meals a day — a ‘nibbling’ diet, as researchers called it — sped up metabolism and lowered the risk of obesity, according to a similar Maastricht University study. Note, snacks between meals are prohibited.

It’s not clear why eating more often has these benefits, but one theory is that frequent meals prevent a high influx of fatty acids — compounds that are released from foods and can lead to a build-up of fats in the arteries, and also contribute to high cholesterol levels. And it seems the regularity of the smaller meals is just as important as the quantity.

What are your thoughts on increasing the frequency of your meals 300%? Do you think 3 meals a day has some sort of biological basis that shouldn’t be subverted? Have you had experiences that have brought you to your own conclusions?

Read more: Basics, Blogs, Eating for Health, Following Food, Food, eating less, meals, snacks

Source : care2[dot]com

Get Thinner By Eating 9 Times A Day!

Eating little and often is healthier than the traditional meals three times a day

Frequent eating helps to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol and even melt the pounds

British scientists have found that eating little and often is healthier than the traditional meals three times a day, report from Daily Mail. The experts advise people to eat nine times a day.
Frequent eating helps to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol and even melt the pounds, say the researchers.
The separation of food intake in such a way that we could eat many times a day has beneficial effects on metabolism, compared to the same food consumed in fewer meals, said the leader of the research Dr. Susan Jebb.
In a recent study, researchers from Imperial College London, compared the diets of more than 2000 people from Britain, Japan, China and USA. Although they received the same amount of calories and food, half of the participants ate less than six times a day and the rest – more than six times a day.
The results showed that the first group had significantly higher systolic blood pressure (the pressure that blood has on blood vessels when the heart beats) than the people who ate more often. Participants in the first group were also significantly more comprehensive.
The Imperial College study supports previous studies advised to give up the idea to stick to three meals a day – breakfast, lunch and dinner. For example, scientists at the University of Athens made a study with more than 2000 children between the age of 9 and 13. The study showed that the children who ate five times a day reduced by 32.6% the risk of having high levels of bad cholesterol in comparison with their peers who ate at least twice a day.
It is unclear why eating more often has this positive impact, but according to one theory, frequent meals prevent high inflow of fatty acids, substances that are released from food and can lead to accumulation of fat in the arteries and contribute to high cholesterol levels.

Source : dailyhealtharticles[dot]com