OBESITY 141hungry is a sign that something is wrong, and prolonged hunger causes
your body to slow the overall rate of metabolism in defense. Moreover,
there are mechanisms in our bodies that naturally allow the right kind
of plant-based foods to nourish us, without our having to think about
every morsel of food we put in our mouths. It is a worry-free way to eat.
Give your body the right food and it will do the right thing.
In some studies, those who follow a whole foods, low-fat, plant-based
diet consume fewer calories. It's not because they're starving themselves.
In fact, they will likely spend more time eating and eat a larger volume
of food than their meat-eating counterparts.^22 That's because fruits, veg-
etables and grains-as whole foods-are much less energy-dense than
animal foods and added fats. There are fewer calories in each spoonful
or cupful of these foods. Remember that fat has nine calories per gram
while carbohydrates and protein have only four calories per gram. In
addition, whole fruits, vegetables and grains have a lot of fiber, which
makes you feel full^22 , 23 and yet contributes almost no calories to your
meal. So by eating a healthy meal, you may reduce the calories that you
consume, digest and absorb, even if you eat Significantly more food,
This idea on its own, however, is not yet a sufficient explanation
for the benefits of a whole foods, plant-based diet. The same criticisms
I made against the Atkins diet and the other popular "low-carb" di-
ets (chapter four) can also be applied to short-term studies in which
subjects consume fewer calories while eating a plant-based diet. Over
the long term, these subjects will find it very difficult to continue con-
suming an abnormally low level of calories; weight loss due to calorie
restriction rarely leads to long-term weight loss. This is why other stud-
ies play such a crucial part in explaining the health benefits of a whole
foods, plant-based diet, studies that show that the weight-loss effect is
due to more than simple calorie restriction.
These studies document the fact that vegetarians consume the same
amount or even Significantly more calories than their meat-eating counter-
parts, and yet are still slimmer. 11 , 24, 25 The China Study demonstrated that
rural Chinese consuming a plant-based diet actually consume signifi-
cantly more calories per pound of body weight than Americans, Most
people would automatically assume that these rural Chinese would
therefore be heavier than their meat-eating counterparts. But here's
the kicker: the rural Chinese are still slimmer while consuming a greater
volume of food and more calories. Much of this effect is undoubtedly due
to greater physical activity ... but this comparison is between average