Soup and Weight Loss: A Natural Combo!

by Gail M. Davis

If it’s not cold and dreary outside, do you ever think to have a nice bowl of soup? You should, because making soup a regular part of your diet can lead to big drops on the scale!

Everyone knows that soup is wonderfully filling and satisfying. Unlike most liquids, soup has a high satiety effect, comparable to solid foods, according to a study conducted at Purdue University. Participants who ate soup consumed fewer calories overall, leading researchers to conclude that soup eaten before a meal, or as a meal, helps reduce hunger and increase feelings of fullness.

With the exceptions of the creamy varieties, soup tends to be lower in calories and healthier than some other meal options. Researchers at Penn State discovered that individuals could lower their caloric intake by 20% just by eating a bowl of low-calorie soup before their meal.

Making and eating soup can be a time-saver! Sure, multi-ingredient soups can be a little labor intensive, but the wonderful thing is that you do it once and then enjoy the pot of soup the rest of the week. Soup also freezes well, so you can make and enjoy it now, and freeze some for later.

You could easily satisfy your vegetable requirement of 2-3 cups with a couple of bowls of soup. Imagine all the wonderful vitamins and minerals that you’ll be consuming. Squash, cauliflower, broccoli, tomatoes, peppers, onions, celery, carrots, and cabbage are all delicious and healthy when added to soup.

You don’t have to be Julia Child to make an award-winning soup. No special culinary skills are required. If you can chop vegetables, you can make a fabulous pot of soup. There are readily available, healthy recipes. In under an hour, you could serve up a pot of steaming heaven with just some low-fat broth, a few seasonings, and some vegetables.

Another wonderful thing about soup is that it is generally packed with fiber. Adults should consume between 25-35 grams each day. Eating soups that are full of vegetables, beans, or whole-grains can get you close to that goal in no time.

Probably the biggest concern that people have about eating soup is the fact that it’s usually high in sodium. Most manufacturers now make low-sodium versions of their most popular soups, but making it at home, from scratch, will allow you to control the ingredients.

So if weight loss is your goal, quit thinking of soup as a winter food and start thinking of it as a daily necessity. Don’t forget that there are wonderful versions of soup served cold, and there are even soups made from fruit! Enjoying soup as an appetizer or as a meal will help you slim down while feeling satisfied.

About the Author:

Gail M. Davis offers delicious, low-calorie soup recipes that can be relished year-round. You’ll find low-calorie recipes, lots of easy weight loss tips, and much more throughout her site.

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