6 Bad Foods That Help You Lose Weight

You want to shed some pounds, and immediately your personal list of no-no’s grows. No bread or potatoes–too many carbs. No chocolate–too fattening. Sound familiar? Well you can throw all those rules out the window. Here’s how your favorite foods can actually help you lose.

Diets Don’t Have to Be So Strict

In fact, forbidding certain foods can backfire. Thanks to fad diets that aren’t based in solid science, people avoid foods that would help them control overeating or fight belly fat and ultimately lose weight. Worse still, having an off-limits list is like stuffing your cravings into a plastic bag. Eventually it’s going to burst open, unleashing all your food urges at once, which leads to bingeing. The real key to weight loss is to watch portions and choose quality, nutrient-rich foods.

Bread
Slim-Down Effect
Contains carbohydrates, which boost brain chemicals that curb overeating

Bread is an excellent source of carbs, which your brain needs to produce serotonin, a neurotransmitter that promotes feelings of comfort and satisfaction. As your body digests carbohydrates, it releases insulin, which helps channel tryptophan–an amino acid–into the brain. Tryptophan then gets converted to serotonin. When serotonin levels are optimal, you feel calm and happy and have fewer cravings; when they’re low, you feel depressed and irritable, making you more likely to overeat.

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