Eating Mindfully

So you grabbed a bag of chips, and a short while later, you were down to the crumbs. How'd that happen?

While you're figuring that out, here's how you can stop it from happening again: Practice mindful eating. There's a growing army of slim people singing this savor-the-moment practice.

Your Mantra: Relax, Focus
To teach yourself how to eat mindfully, start with a raisin. Take a deep, relaxing breath as you pick it up. Look at it for a few seconds. Smell it. Place it in your mouth and roll it around on your tongue. Feel the wrinkles. Now bite. Note the chewy, gritty texture -- the sweet, fruity, astringent taste. Extract all the flavor before you swallow. That's kind of the idea with mindful eating -- to savor the look, smell, texture, and taste of every bite. And it works! It had a huge impact on curbing chronic binge eating in a recent study.

A Few More Ways to Eat Less
While you focus on every bite, give these other appetite-control tips a try, too:

• Eat more. Yep, you heard right. Watch this video to find out how it helps.
• Think "mini meal." Here's how six small meals help hold off hunger.
• Drink a glass (or two) of water. It could be all you need to satisfy a craving. Here's why.
• Don't hide it. People who see the evidence left over from a snack or meal -- like candy wrappers or chicken bones -- don't eat as much. Learn more about this strategy.

Get smart-eating advice from best-selling authors Michael Roizen, MD, and Mehmet Oz, MD, with the YOU: On a Diet Center.

A preliminary study of the effects of a modified mindfulness intervention on binge eating. Smith, B. W. et al., Complementary Health Practice Review, October; 2006 11(3):133-143.