Can I eat more if I chew more?

October 29, 2025 •

2 min read

In a 2014 study, increasing the number of chews per bite by 150-200% significantly reduced food intake by nearly 15% during a meal, providing a powerful answer to the question: can I eat more if I chew more?. The evidence suggests that more chewing does not enable greater consumption, but rather, works as a behavioral strategy to reduce how much you eat.

Quick Summary

Chewing more does not increase your capacity to eat; instead, it reduces overall food intake by promoting satiety and slowing down your eating pace. This allows the body's natural fullness signals to register with the brain, modulating hunger and supporting healthier eating habits.

Key Points

Chewing Reduces Intake: Increasing chewing time can significantly reduce the amount of food you consume.
Hormones Control Satiety: Thorough chewing triggers the release of satiety hormones and suppresses hunger hormones.
Pace Matters: Chewing more forces you to eat slower, allowing time for the brain to register fullness.
Improves Digestion: Properly chewed food is easier to break down, leading to better nutrient absorption and fewer digestive issues.
Fosters Mindful Eating: Slowing down to chew more helps you become more aware of your body's cues.
Supports Weight Management: Chewing more can be a simple strategy to aid in weight control by reducing overall calorie intake.

The Surprising Link Between Mastication and Satiety

It may seem counterintuitive, but the act of chewing more is a powerful tool for reducing food intake, not increasing it. Thorough chewing triggers a cascade of physiological responses that signal to your brain that you are satisfied, potentially preventing overeating. More chewing influences gut hormones that regulate appetite.

The Hormonal Messengers of Fullness

Chewing impacts key hormones affecting appetite and fullness. Studies indicate increased chewing may decrease ghrelin (the 'hunger hormone') and increase cholecystokinin (CCK) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), hormones associated with reduced appetite and increased satiety. These changes contribute to signals that tell the brain when to stop eating. Fast eating can bypass some of this crucial oral feedback.

The Role of Eating Pace and Mindful Consumption

Eating speed significantly influences consumption. It takes about 20 minutes for the brain to receive fullness signals. Faster eating can lead to consuming many calories before these signals register. Chewing more naturally slows your pace, extending the meal and allowing brain and body to communicate effectively.

This slower approach also encourages paying attention to hunger and fullness cues, often missed in hurried meals. Mindful eating can improve your relationship with food, making meals more satisfying and less about mindless calorie intake.

Chewing Habits: Fast vs. Slow

Here is a comparison of different chewing habits:


Feature	Fast, Insufficient Chewing	Slow, Thorough Chewing
Eating Pace	Rapid, potentially leading to overconsumption.	Slow and deliberate, extending meal duration.
Satiety Signals	Delayed and weaker.	Enhanced and quicker.
Hormonal Response	Reduced release of appetite-suppressing hormones.	Increased release of appetite-suppressing hormones.
Digestion Effort	More strain on the digestive system.	Easier on the digestive system.
Nutrient Absorption	Can be less efficient.	More efficient absorption.
Common Side Effects	Bloating, indigestion, and gas.	Less likelihood of digestive discomfort.

Practical Steps to Improve Your Chewing Habits

Improving chewing is a simple strategy for health and weight management. It requires only attention, not complex diets or supplements. Consider these tips:

Put Your Utensils Down: Place your fork or spoon down between bites to create pauses.
Focus on Texture and Flavor: Pay attention to the sensory details of your food; don't swallow until texture is significantly reduced.
Count Your Chews (initially): Counting to 20-30 chews per bite can help reset habits, especially for dense foods.
Take Smaller Bites: Smaller bites are easier to chew thoroughly and encourage a slower pace.
Limit Distractions: Avoid screens while eating to focus on your meal and body signals.

Conclusion

The idea that you can eat more by chewing more is incorrect. Chewing more is a validated behavioral method to decrease food intake and enhance satiety. By slowing eating, boosting fullness hormones, and aiding digestion, better chewing helps you feel satisfied with less food. Adopting this habit supports better digestive health, more mindful eating, and weight management. Effective health strategies are often simple. For more scientific information on mastication and satiety, consult academic journals {Link: Consensus https://consensus.app/search/does-chewing-affect-gut-hormone-secretion-and-appe/dz8RLacFQc6T3kuMdwykBw/}.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, chewing more can be an effective weight management strategy. By slowing down your eating and triggering satiety hormones, it helps reduce overall calorie intake at meals without feeling deprived.

While there is no magic number, many experts suggest aiming for 20 to 30 chews per bite, especially for denser foods. The goal is to break the food down until it is almost liquid before swallowing.

Yes, swallowing large, unchewed pieces of food forces your digestive system to work harder. This can lead to bloating, indigestion, gas, and other gastrointestinal issues.

The '20-minute rule' refers to the time it takes for your brain to receive fullness signals from your stomach. By chewing more, you naturally extend your meal duration past this 20-minute mark, preventing you from overeating.

Yes, thoroughly chewing your food breaks it down into smaller particles, which increases the surface area for digestive enzymes to act upon. This can lead to more efficient nutrient absorption.

For food, excessive chewing is generally not a concern and has no negative impacts. However, excessive chewing of gum can cause jaw pain or other issues for some people.

Yes, foods that require more chewing, such as harder or more fibrous items, naturally cause you to eat slower and take longer to consume. This promotes satiety and can reduce food intake.