However, help may be at hand in the form of the humble avocado, as they’re being hailed as the new diet super food – with studies showing that those who eat half of one at lunch snack less.
The study, conducted by Loma Linda University in Californida, concluded that hunger pangs are reduced by 40% when consuming avocados. As well as a reduced desire to eat, participants also reported they they felt more satisfied than usual in the three hours after the meal.
Dr Joan Sabate, who led the study, explained: “Satiety is an important factor in weight management, because people who feel satisfied are less likely to snack between meals. We noted that although adding avocados increased participants’ calorie and carbohydrate intake at lunch, there was no increase in blood sugar levels beyond what was observed after eating the standard lunch.”
Avocados aren’t a particularly diet-friendly snack – half of one can contain a whopping 150 calories – however, their ability to stop you wolfing down chocolate could mean that their high fat content doesn’t matter too much.
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