When you eat your breakfast as fast as possible in order to get to school or work on time, you can say that you wolf down your waffles. When you engage in this kind of speed eating, you wolf down, or simply "wolf," your food. Imagine a starving wolf finally getting the chance to eat, gulping down its meal as quickly as it can before some other hungry animal comes along. Wolf down was first used in the 1860's, from this sense of "eat like a wolf."
Does It Matter?
Did your Mom ever tell you not to 'wolf down' your food? Did she tell you it would likely result in a stomachache? Your Mom was spot on with he stomachache, but there is something else, she probably wasn't aware of.
Leslie Heinberg, PhD, M.A. of the Cleveland Clinic's Center for Behavioral Health shared the results of a study from another University and stated: "People who were the slowest eaters had the lowest risk of obesity. People who self-described as medium-eaters had a bit higher risk, but the highest risk was in the fast-eating group."
When we eat, the signals of hunger have to move from our stomach and gut to our brain. It takes the brain about 20 minutes to shut off the urge to eat.
If you're a fast eater, you'll consume more food in 20 minutes than a slow eater. By the time a fast-eater gets the satiety signals, it's too late - they have overeaten and are uncomfortably full.
Playing Catch-Up
We need to let our brain catch up with our stomach! And, eating more food won't make the signals travel faster. There will always be about a 20 minute delay. You can feel full on less food as long as you slow your pace enough to give your body time to figure it out.
Eating habits can track back to childhood, when the fastest eater had the best chance of getting a second helping before the food was gone.
Getting too hungry or being presented with really enticing food can also cause one to eat more quickly and also eat more. When you're really hungry you are also likely to reach for the unhealthy, high-calorie foods.
Slowing Down
There are a number of things one can do to slow down eating habits.
Try eating your food in courses. Eat your salad or veggies first. This will allow you to begin to fill up on the lowest calorie part of your meal. Then eat the main portion of your meal.
Eating the salad and veggies first will also fill you up more because they are high fiber foods, and high fiber foods are more filling. Crunchy raw veggies, fruits and whole grains also require more chewing time which in turn slows down your eating patterns.
Take smaller bites when eating your meal. This will make the meal last longer and give your brain time to catch up. If your food needs to be cut up to eat, cut it into bite size portions as you eat. It's to easy to gulp it down fast if you cut it all up before you begin eating.
Slow Down Hints
Swallow each bite before filling up your fork again.
The eating rhythm is: chew and swallow, reload fork, take another bite, chew and swallow.
Put your utensils and handheld foods down in between bites. This takes practice, but definitely slows down the eating pattern.
Sip on water through-out your meal. This not only slows your pace, it allows you to consume more water with your meal and helps to fill you up.
Try using a timer to stretch your meal out to 30 minutes or so.
Try chewing each mouthful anywhere from 15 to 30 times, depending on the food.
Eating slower is a simple way to help control weight, but as with other daily habits it also takes practice. Set aside time to eat your meals at a leisurely pace vs. trying to work them in. Enjoy your evening meal, or any meal, around the dinner table, with family, friends and good conversation. Remember, this is one race where you want to come in last.
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