Here's how snacking on almonds can help suppress binge eating

While most of us tend to stick to a schedule when we eat (breakfast, lunch, dinner), some people also tend to opt for snacks in between. And let's be honest, not all of us opt for healthy snacks, do we? In fact, a lot of people binge-eat on unhealthy snacks and this leads to more complications in their diet. This is where almonds step in. Research shows that consuming almonds instead of regular snacks can help suppress that binge-eating habit.

Since almonds are rich in fibres they can help keep you feeling satiated for much longer and will also reduce your desire to binge on unhealthy foods. And although the researchers were unable to find the difference between day-long calorie intakes, they were able to find that people who snacked on almonds two hours before lunch, ate less during lunch and thus reduced their calorie intake.

“The findings show that almonds suppressed between-meal hunger, but also reduced the reward value of other high energy foods,” said lead researcher of the study Professor Graham Finlayson. “This makes it less likely that they would be tempted to eat these foods when faced with them outside of the controlled laboratory situation,” Finlayson said.

The study was conducted on 42 women aged 26-34 years. These women were divided into two groups and while one group ate almonds for mid-day snacks the other ate crackers. It was found that women who opted for almonds consumed fewer calories at lunch and also felt happy with their choice whereas the women who ate crackers felt hungry despite snacking on the crackers.

This shows that eating healthy not only helps you lose weight but can also boost your morale by making you believe that you're consuming the right foods.