Soup helps dieters lose weight

Soup could be the answer to the obesity (too fat) crisis, according to scientists. Researchers in America found that people who had soup as a first course at lunch reduced their calorie intake by almost a fifth.

The soup must be low calorie because a creamy soup has the opposite effect.

The finding was a surprise to scientists who were testing the theory of "volumetrics" which decrees (says) that the thickness of a soup affects how full someone feels after eating it.

Dr. Barbara Rolls, Professor of Nutrition at Pennsylvania State University, said: "Earlier work suggests that chunky soup may be the most filling type, so the purpose of this study was to determine whether different forms of soup might have different effects on food intake."

Sixty volunteers took part in the study over five lunchtimes. They had either broth (light soup) with a separate helping of vegetables, chunky soup, chunky pureed soup and pureed soup or one meal without soup.

All the soups tested had identical ingredients - chicken broth, broccoli, potato, cauli-flower, carrots and butter.

They found the thickness or form of the soup made little difference. However, participants consumed nearly 20 per cent fewer calories when they had a soup course.

Julie Flood, a nutritional scientist who led the study, said: "Consuming a first course of low-calorie soup in a variety of forms can help with managing weight.

"People on diets are usually restricting their food intake, which is not always effective because they feel they are missing out on eating.

"What our study shows is that when volunteers had soup they were eating more food but consuming fewer calories.

"People adopting this strategy should make sure to choose wisely by picking low-calorie, broth-based soups that are about 100 to 150 calories per serving."

The research, funded by the National Institutes of Health, was presented to the Experimental Biology conference in Washington DC.

The Daily Telegraph