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Have you ever thought about other foods in the form of liquid, like soup or stew? You must be thinking all soups are healthy, but that’s not true.
While it may be a versatile and flavorful dish, not all soups are as healthy as you think. Why's that? Well, we are here to tell you what makes soup healthy .And what are benefits of eating that healthy soups?
If your soup is more like a veggie-packed borscht or a cream of mushroom, then you better skip it because it's not what we call healthy. Instead, you go with a "starter strategy," especially when you are given the option between a light salad or veggie-heavy soup. In this strategy you should always choose a low-calorie appetizer and it will makes you feel full until the main course arrives.
And yes, that works. It's not just us telling you this; it's a science-based strategy. According to various studies, people who start their meals with a low-calorie soup or salad may have fewer calories at the end of their meal.
Not only this, but another study found out that the participants who had their first course of a low-calorie soup before their lunch reduced their total intake of calories by 20%, as compared to when they didn't have soup.
Amazing, isn't it? Now that you know all the benefits of a healthy soup, you must be wondering which soups give you that benefit. Well, to help you with that, we have a variety of soups— both filling and satiating.
The Most Filling Ones:
We know it’s not easy to believe that soup can be more satisfying than most of the regular food that you chew. But it is, and various studies have proved it.
When Dr. Miriam Clegg, a professor at Oxford Brookes University, heard this idea, she was also skeptical about whether to prove it or disprove it. However, her own study confirmed that soups are more filling than solid food. That's because soups register fullness to your brain sooner and can stay longer in the stomach than solid foods making you feel fuller for longer.
Let's look at the different soups and which will be more fulfilling.
First one- 3 cups of chicken-and-vegetable soup (250 calories)
The second one- 4-ounce chicken breast with 1 cup roasted vegetables (250 calories)
Both of these options are of the same calories, so could they be equally filling? No, that's not the case. In the above options, the first one is more filling. When it comes to soup, the ingredients are all that matters.
The More Satiating One:
Let's assume we have two options here:
2 cups of Hearty Italian Chunky Beef Soup
2 cups of creamy smooth cauliflower soup
Which one you think will be more satiating, the chunky one or the smooth one? Well, The answer is "both".
If it is chunky and more chewy, that does not mean it will be more satiating. Both of the soups are equally satiating as long as they have good ingredients and equal calories.
Most people like to make their soup chunkier and chewier just to make it more filling. But the truth is all soups are equally filling and satiating. And that can be good news for you if you are using blenders for your soups.
A study was conducted by The Journal Appetite where they used 6 identical ingredients: butter, carrots, cauliflower, potato, broccoli & chicken broth. They prepared them four different ways: broth with veggies, chunky soup, chunky pureed soup and pureed. They we're all equally filling.
Final Words
Liquids are not as satisfying as chewing food, mostly. But that's not the case with "healthy soups." These soups will make you feel full by providing a satiating effect.
So, next time you are going to have a meal, start it with a cup of soup, and you will see how much less you end up eating than you would in your usual routine.
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