Processed foods stimulate the appetite more than unprocessed foods, which makes it more conducive to the development of overweight and obesity. This has been shown in a study by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease in the US.
The research on how processed and unprocessed products work on the body lasted a month, and 20 volunteers took part in it. During the study, they were alternately fed food from both groups and differences in food absorption were checked. It found that those participants who were the first to consume processed foods experienced greater appetite and consumed more food - by an average of over 500 kcal. As a result, within 2 weeks they gained an average of 1 kg.
Dr. Kevin Hall of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases in the US, lead author of the study, assured that the products used in both groups were equally tasty. He believes that the ingredients they contain are responsible for the greater consumption of processed products, which stimulate the appetite more. This also justifies the second result of the study: when volunteers consumed unprocessed food, their levels of ghrelin, or the hunger hormone, decreased.
"This is the first study to show that there is a causal relationship between the two. It also indicates that it can be similar in the case of a larger group of people "- emphasizes the American specialist.
Based on: PAP, www.diabetologia.esculap.com
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