Eat Only When You Are Hungry: Experts

Do you tend to munch something or the other between your meals even when you are not hungry? If yes, such a habit can severely harm your health, warns a new study. In contrast to people in traditional societies, people in contemporary societies often eat not on account of hunger but on easy availability of delectable food is available.The widespread advertising of such food also bombards the consumer with the temptation to eat.A new study by David Gal from University of Illinois, Chicago suggests that it might be healthier for individuals to eat when they are moderately hungry than when they are not hungry at all. 45 undergraduate students participated in the study wherein they were first asked to rate their level of hunger and then to consume a meal rich in carbohydrates. To measure how the meal impacted participants' health, their blood glucose levels were measured at regular intervals after they consumed the meal.Blood glucose levels tend to rise after consuming a meal rich in carbohydrates and it is generally healthier if blood glucose levels rise by a relatively small amount because. Elevated blood glucose has damaging effects on body's cells.
The results of the study showed that individuals who were moderately hungry before the meal tended to have lower blood glucose levels after consuming the meal than individuals who were not particularly hungry before consuming the meal.The study was published in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research.