Mother Always Said “Chew Your Food Properly”

There’s more to chewing than just breaking your food up to make it easier to swallow.  This is what emerged from a Chinese study of different chewing times on energy intake and plasma gut hormone levels.  It was published in July in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 

The participants were 16 lean and 14 obese young men.  In a preliminary study, the subjects were observed as they ate a meal, attention being focused on the frequency and number of chewing movements.  It was found that, on average, the lean men took fewer bites than the obese men (4 per minute vs. 5 per minute), and that the lean men chewed more per bite (21 vs. 17 chews per bite).

In the main study, the subjects were given two test meals of 2,200 kJ (525 calories) each, made up of 68% carbohydrate, 21% fat, and 11% protein.  They were instructed to take bites of about 10 grams, and for one meal to use 15 chews per bite, and for the other, 40 chews per bite.  They were to eat until they were satisfied.

Regardless of whether they were lean or obese, the men ingested 12% less when chewing 40 times a bite than 15 times a bite.  Moreover, the 40 chews per bite resulted in lower postprandial ghrelin levels and higher glucagon-like-peptide 1 and cholecystokinin levels. These gut hormone changes suggest greater satiety after 40 chews a minute.

Although there were not major differences between lean and obese men in this study,  the findings indicate more chews per bite are likely to result in less energy intake as well as a greater feeling of satiety.  As mother said, “chew your food properly” – and maybe you won’t get too fat.