Protein-Rich Diet Curbs Appetite

Previously, research has shown that higher-protein diets, containing 18 to 35% of daily calorie intake from dietary protein, are associated with reductions in hunger and increased fullness throughout the day and into the evening hours.  Heather Leidy, from the University of Missouri (Missouri, USA), and colleagues completed  study in which two groups ate either 25 or 14% of calories from protein, while the total calories and percent of calories from fat stayed the same between the higher-protein and normal-protein diet patterns.   Concurrently, the team also conducted an eating frequency substudy in which the 27 participants on both normal- and higher-protein diets consumed either three meals or six meals per day. The researchers found that eating frequency had no effect on appetite and satiety on the normal-protein diet. However, subjects on the higher-protein diet who ate three meals per day experienced greater evening and late-night fullness than those who ate six meals per day. The team concludes that: “Collectively, these data support the consumption of [higher protein] intake, but not greater eating frequency, for improved appetite control and satiety in overweight/obese men during energy restriction-induced weight loss.”