Fiber-Based Ingredient May Cause People to Eat Less During Meals

Want to eat less? Have some fiber. Scientists have found that a fiber-based dietary ingredient makes people feel less hungry and consume less food, which could be a way to help combat obesity in the future.

Hunger can be a major barrier when it comes to successfully losing weight. Although fibers have the potential to control appetite without adding additional calories, though, they can make food less appealing. That's why researchers have looked more closely at how to employ fibers to control appetite and food intake.

In this case, the scientists tested whether a new product, consisting of a combination of dietary fiber sources including a viscous hydrocolloid and a whole-grain corn flower, could make people feel fuller for longer and influence the amount of food they ate. In all, 90 normal to overweight participants were given a fruit-based smoothie for breakfast with either 20 g or 30g of the new ingredient.

So what did they find? It turns out that food intake at both lunch and dinner was lower when the satiety ingredient was taken during breakfast. Those with the 20g dose ate 4 percent fewer calories while those with the 30g dose ate 5 percent fewer calories.

"This is the first study to examine the short term effect of this particular combination of fibers on appetite and food intake," said Jo Harrold, one of the researchers, in a news release. "Whilst more research is needed to measure these effects of the product over longer periods of time and in people who are actively trying to lose weight, this study demonstrates high fiber food products which make you feel fuller could provide a potential solution to weight management."

The findings could mean a new way to help control weight. With the new ingredient, those attempting to shed pounds could feel fuller and thus be more likely to eat less during other meals.