Dietary Energy Density and Weight Regulation

Abstract

Dietary energy density (ED) has been suggested as an important determinant of energy intake and, therefore, energy regulation. This review summarizes published studies on the effects of dietary ED on hunger, satiety, energy intake, and body weight in healthy individuals, and compares the relative effects of ED manipulated by dietary fat only, fat and fiber, water, and type of sweetener. In short‐term studies, consumption of low‐ED foods promotes satiety, reduces hunger, and decreases energy intake with no marked differences between different dietary manipulations used to change ED. In addition, low‐ED diets promote moderate weight loss in long‐term studies. In studies lasting longer than 6 months, weight loss was more than three times as great in individuals consuming diets both low in fat and high in fiber compared with diets only low in fat (−3.4 kg versus ‐1.0 kg). Combined, these studies suggest that diets low in fat and high in fiber may be the most effective low‐ED diets for promoting weight loss. Further research is needed on the effects of dietary ED by changing water or sweetener content.

Long - Term Effects of Energy-Restricted Diets Differing in Glycemic Load on Metabolic Adaptation and Body Composition*

“…We speculate that one explanation might be the lack of differences in hunger between our study diets, in view of recent speculations that metabolic adaptation and hunger may be closely linked [55]. Both of our diets were relatively high in fiber and low in energy density, factors which have been linked to reduced hunger and adequate satiety [56,57].…”

The effects of dietary fibre on C-reactive protein, an inflammation marker predicting cardiovascular disease

“…The relation between DF and body weight has often been reviewed (Howarth et al, 2001;Pereira and Ludwig, 2001;Slavin, 2005). Mechanisms through which DF can assist in weight loss include, but are not limited to, the effects of DF on gastric emptying (Yao and Roberts, 2001), satiety (Holt et al, 1992), gut hormones such as cholecystokinin (BurtonFreeman et al, 2002) and an altered glycaemic index or insulin response (Anderson et al, 2004). However, in some instances, significance in both weight loss and CRP was not achieved.…”

Using restrictive messages to limit high-fat foods or nonrestrictive messages to increase fruit and vegetable intake: what works better for postmenopausal women?

“…In the HIFV group, the decrease in energy density was explained by the increase in weight of food and more specifically by the increase in fruit and vegetable intakes. It has been shown that individuals tend to eat a constant quantity of food (Yao and Roberts, 2001). The increase in the weight of food observed in the HIFV group probably led to a decreased feeling of hunger and a higher satiety, which could favor a spontaneous decrease in energy intake.…”

“…This mechanism might explain the link between the decreased energy density and the decrease in body weight in women from the HIFV group. In addition, some studies have clearly shown that decreasing energy intake did not influence hunger and satiety feelings when achieved by lowering the energy density of meals without decreasing the total weight of food consumed (Bell et al, 1998;Rolls et al, 1999;Yao and Roberts, 2001). Accordingly, it could be suggested that an intervention focusing on positive messages to increase fruit and vegetable intakes will lead to weight loss only in women with adequate perceptions of their satiety signals who spontaneously substitute fruits and vegetables for energy-dense foods.…”