Eat More Often and... Gain Weight

Eat More Often and... Gain Weight
kasto80/iStock
Joel Fuhrman
Updated:

It is well known that in recent years, restaurant portion sizes have steadily increased, and many single meals at fast food outlets and restaurants pack in enough calories for an entire day. Overall in the U.S., we are surrounded by calorie-dense food all the time. Today, we eat more and more often than we did 20 or 30 years ago. We eat constantly. Calorie-dense, nutrient-poor snacks are everywhere. And many of our beverages contain enough calories to be meals in themselves.

However, “eat smaller, more frequent meals” is common weight loss advice — supposedly, if we eat more often to “keep blood sugar stable,” we will avoid overeating. But does this really work? Is it sound advice for reducing caloric intake overall? The research says no — eating more frequently actually appears to promote weight gain.

Between 1977 and 2006: Overweight and obesity rates in the U.S. skyrocketed from 48.5% to 70.1%. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Between 1977 and 2006: Overweight and obesity rates in the U.S. skyrocketed from 48.5% to 70.1%. Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Joel Fuhrman
Joel Fuhrman
Author
Joel Fuhrman, M.D. is a board-certified family physician, seven-time New York Times best-selling author and internationally recognized expert on nutrition and natural healing. He specializes in preventing and reversing disease through nutritional methods.
Related Topics