Are You Satisfied?

When you think of your stomach from now on, you should think of it as a muscle. In fact it is 5 layers of muscle. The Mucosa, the inner most layer, the Submucosa, the Muscularis Externa, the Subserosa, and the Serosa. The last two are sometimes considered together. Anyway, each layer has a responsibility. I am only going to tell you about the Muscularis Externa because it contains three sublayers, one of which is responsible for the churning, or movement, of any food that enters your stomach.
The average adult stomach is about 12 inches long and 6 inches wide at its widest part. Our stomachs have a capacity between 1 quart and 1 liter, but can be distended up to four times that capacity. The good news is that it can also be re-sized back to its normal size. All of our muscles can be trained, this includes our stomach muscles.
It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to tell your stomach that it has had enough to eat. During meal time it is suggested that people get from in front of any distractions, namely the television, and focus on the fact that they are actually eating. When we eat mindlessly we allow ourselves to eat more, therefore expanding our stomach. Over time our stomach muscles expand because we have, time and time again, told our brain to ignore the fact that we were full. This in turn allows us to eat more. This vicious cycle then causes excess weight gain.
One solution I have learned to eating less is to eat from a smaller plate. If you begin with a smaller dish you can decide once you are finished if you are still physically hungry or if you are desiring to have more. I understand that we have all made or bought some memorable meals but we have to keep in mind the health of our bodies, and any goals for weight loss. Drinking water along with your meal may also be of help as it will assist in giving off that "full" feeling without adding excess calories.

God Bless. See you next Sunday

Tausha
Health and Activity