Porridge in morning suppresses appetite

Low GI foods stimulate ‘full’ hormone

Eating a bowl of porridge in the morning really will keep you feeling fuller for longer, scientists have discovered, in what could be the key to how the GI diet works. A new study suggests that foods with a low glycaemic index (GI), like oats, trigger the release of greater amounts of a hormone in the gut which delays hunger pangs by creating a ‘full’ sensation.

The team, from King's College London, looked at the effects of different diets on 12 healthy volunteers. Foods classed as having a low GI include granary bread, milk, most fruit and vegetables, while high GI foods include white bread, croissants and cornflakes.

Scientists previously knew that a low GI diet took longer to digest, releasing sugar more slowly into the bloodstream. Now a team of researchers have discovered that foods with a low GI score stimulate the release of around 20 per cent more of the GLP-1 hormone per meal than foods with a high GI ratio.

Dr Reza Norouzy, who led the study, said that the chemical was ‘one of the most potent hormones for suppressing appetite. This is an exciting result which provides further clues about how our appetite is regulated, and offers an insight into how a low GI diet produces satiety.’

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