Walnut Weight Loss: Harvard’s Simple Trick to Curb Cravings and Shed Pounds Fast
Fight cravings and burn fat naturally with this doctor approved walnut weight loss plan!
Instead of diet pills, can we actually use walnuts for weight loss? It may sound far-fetched, but it’s an exciting technique being developed at Harvard and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Inspired by earlier research that found dieters were far less hungry when their menus included walnuts, a team led by Christos Mantzoros, MD, DSc, PhD, used MRI testing to help figure out why.
The result: On days when participants sipped walnut smoothies, an area of their brains that suppresses hunger and cravings literally “lit up,” per the researchers. When the same test subjects sipped walnut-free smoothies, their appetite-control centers remained dark and inactive. “This is a powerful measure,” Dr. Mantzoros says. “We know there’s no ambiguity in terms of study results.” Ultimately, he and his team hope to use their findings “to develop new medications to make it easier for people to keep weight down.”
While that will require more studies and many years, experts encourage us to take advantage of walnuts’ amazing appetite-control power right now. In fact, Extreme Transformation (Amazon, $10.09) author Chris Powell — who routinely helps folks lose 200 pounds or more — has created a walnut-based hack that’s already working wonders. “It’s one of the most powerful ‘body hacks’ to conquer cravings and overeating — not only during the holidays but forever,” he promises Woman’s World. Readers back him up. Powell’s walnut trick helped them shed up to eight pounds a week without cutting out indulgences.
Woman's World Answers
How to use walnuts for weight loss
Powells hack is easy to try: Before any two meals daily, enjoy seven to eight walnut halves. Wait 15 to 30 minutes, drink a glass of water, and dig in. “After that, just stop eating as you begin to feel full,” says Powell.
Powell says this strategy actually mimics the effect of lap-band surgery. How? Well, as good fat begins to move through the digestive tract, “it triggers a valve at the bottom of the stomach — called the pyloric sphincter — to constrict,” he explains. Because the valve constricts tightly, the water Powell has you drink before your meal then gets trapped in your stomach and goes a long way toward filling you up, so you’ll naturally consume fewer calories. This trick also slows digestion overall, so your body can’t convert the carbs you eat into blood sugar as quickly. “The strongest cravings we experience are triggered by sudden surges and dips in blood sugar,” Powell notes. “Use walnuts wisely, and it gets you off the blood-sugar roller coaster, so you experience real relief from the urge to grab every pretzel and cookie in sight.”
And while the trick can work with any nut, walnuts exert additional hunger-fighting power. Mantzoros and his team believe future studies will reveal which specific compounds in walnuts activate appetite-control areas of the brain. For now, Harvard research has already shown that walnuts influence our body chemistry in a way that slashes overall hunger in as little as three days. There’s also a separate study published in Archives of Internal Medicine, now JAMA Internal Medicine, that found omega-3 fatty acids in walnuts may prompt our bodies to burn fat faster
Two ways to kill hunger with walnuts
Using Powell’s approach is easy. Just munch walnuts 15 to 30 minutes before your two largest meals each day, then drink a full glass of water right before you begin your meal. Not in the mood for plain walnuts? As an alternative, sip a Maple Walnut Smoothie (recipe found below) 15 to 30 minutes before a meal instead. Then drink a full glass of water before you eat.
Keep in mind this works by reducing hunger, so you’ll get the best results if you avoid overeating out of habit. Try to savor each bite and pay attention to your body. Aim to stop eating as soon as you feel lightly full.
Bonus recipe: Maple-Walnut Smoothie
- 8 walnut halves or 2 Tbsp. chopped walnuts
- 1 Tbsp. rolled oats
- 1/2 cup no-sugar-added almond milk
- 1 tsp. instant espresso powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 packet stevia
- 1/2 tsp. maple extract
- 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
In blender, blitz nuts and oats to a fine powder; add almond milk, espresso, salt, stevia, and extracts. Whip to combine. Add ice to taste and blitz again; serve immediately. Makes one 161-calorie drink.
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