Name of study: Higher fasting hunger hormone levels from a healthy diet may improve heart health and metabolism By who and where: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Beer-Sheva, Israel, and the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston
What does it say?
✥ In individuals who followed the green Mediterranean diet, it was found that after weight loss, the fasting levels of the ghrelin or the hunger hormone, rebounded.
✥ This is believed to reduce belly fat and improve the body’s sensitivity to insulin, as ghrelin plays a major role in appetite, and thus, weight loss.
✥ These people were less prone to diabetes and metabolic diseases.
For
Green drops the kilos
Dr Manjunath Malige, Chief
Endocrinologist and Diabetologist, Aster RV Hospital, JP Nagar, Bengaluru
A Mediterranean diet promotes a feeling of satiety. Green leafy vegetables contain thylakoids, known to promote satiety. This has the potential to improve metabolic syndrome. The role of ghrelin has been vastly studied in weight control and as an indicator of cardiometabolic health, ghrelin-based medications could be an alternative solution to weight control in overweight and obese people. This is because some medications reduce hunger and thereby help drop the kilos.
Against
The study has limitations
Dr S P Byotra, Senior Consultant & Chairman, Department of Medicine,
Sir Gangaram Hospital, New Delhi
The study has been done on less than 300 people in three groups and is based on an assumption, not fact, that it can prevent insulin resistance, abdomen obesity and diabetes mellitus. Green Mediterranean dieting can lead to ketosis that might result in headaches, constipation, and bad breath. Also, in individuals where weight loss is crucial and therapies are required, a green diet cannot control the situation. For instance, overeating greens can have an adverse effect such as excess of certain vitamins leading to toxicity.
by Anu Jain Rohatgi