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CNN Live At Daybreak
Food for Thought
Aired November 11, 2003 - 06:52 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Some food for thought now as you sit down to your bowl of Corn Flakes this morning. If you're feeling hungry again not long after you eat breakfast, you may want to make some changes to your menu.
Dr. Sandy Fryhofer is here with more -- so, why do we get hungry even if we eat a big huge bowl of Corn Flakes in the morning?
DR. SANDRA FRYHOFER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it has calories, but it's the glycemic index that makes you hungry, if it's a high glycemic index. Now, the thing to watch out for in breakfast foods is that high glycemic index. And the glycemic index is another way of ranking foods according to how quickly they break down into sugar and elevate blood sugar levels. And foods that break down quickly have a high glycemic index. And this includes things like potatoes, bananas, white bread, refined cereals and sugar. While foods that break down slowly have a low glycemic index. And this group contains fruits, whole wheat, oats, bran, whole grain breakfast cereals.
And the theory is that the foods with the high glycemic index cause a rise in insulin levels and this is what makes you feel hungry again. So you end up eating more. But if you eat foods with a low glycemic index, you won't get as hungry and you'll lose weight.
In fact, a recent study in the journal "Pediatrics" looked at how the glycemic index of breakfast affected kids' appetite at lunch. The study included normal weight kids as well as overweight kids. And the kids who ate a low glycemic index breakfast ate significantly less for lunch and they felt less hungry in between meals.
COSTELLO: OK, so this is the question, what's the perfect breakfast?
FRYHOFER: Everybody listening? Well, in this study, it's something like a bran-based cereal or porridge. It's a better choice for not feeling hungry than a sugary cereal. But the problem is that the kids say that these low glycemic breakfasts aren't -- don't taste as good.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes.
FRYHOFER: So they like to add a little extra sugar, and that's OK.
COSTELLO: Is that OK? What if you add like Sweet 'N Low? Is that different from sugar or does that do the same thing? FRYHOFER: Well, it's different from sugar. It doesn't have the calories. But you know that. But let's take a look at some common breakfast choices and their glycemic index. The Corn Flakes are pretty high. The muesli and the bran cereals are much lower, as are fruits, apples and milk. So that's, that can give you a little bit of a guide.
COSTELLO: Well, you're talking about the glycemic index, but when you look at the nutrition labels in the grocery store, that's not listed on there. So how do you know which foods to buy?
FRYHOFER: Well, Carol, that's a great question. The best thing to do is to look for the processing. Generally foods that -- the less processing, the better. Processing tends to remove the outer bran and inner germ layer of the grain kernel and this can cause bigger spikes in the blood sugar. Also, you need to try to limit concentrated sugars, as well.
COSTELLO: Oatmeal, oatmeal.
FRYHOFER: Oatmeal is very good.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes, that's excellent.
FRYHOFER: It sticks to your ribs, right?
COSTELLO: It certainly does, and more.
Thanks.
Dr. Sandy Fryhofer live this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 11, 2003 - 06:52 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Some food for thought now as you sit down to your bowl of Corn Flakes this morning. If you're feeling hungry again not long after you eat breakfast, you may want to make some changes to your menu.
Dr. Sandy Fryhofer is here with more -- so, why do we get hungry even if we eat a big huge bowl of Corn Flakes in the morning?
DR. SANDRA FRYHOFER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it has calories, but it's the glycemic index that makes you hungry, if it's a high glycemic index. Now, the thing to watch out for in breakfast foods is that high glycemic index. And the glycemic index is another way of ranking foods according to how quickly they break down into sugar and elevate blood sugar levels. And foods that break down quickly have a high glycemic index. And this includes things like potatoes, bananas, white bread, refined cereals and sugar. While foods that break down slowly have a low glycemic index. And this group contains fruits, whole wheat, oats, bran, whole grain breakfast cereals.
And the theory is that the foods with the high glycemic index cause a rise in insulin levels and this is what makes you feel hungry again. So you end up eating more. But if you eat foods with a low glycemic index, you won't get as hungry and you'll lose weight.
In fact, a recent study in the journal "Pediatrics" looked at how the glycemic index of breakfast affected kids' appetite at lunch. The study included normal weight kids as well as overweight kids. And the kids who ate a low glycemic index breakfast ate significantly less for lunch and they felt less hungry in between meals.
COSTELLO: OK, so this is the question, what's the perfect breakfast?
FRYHOFER: Everybody listening? Well, in this study, it's something like a bran-based cereal or porridge. It's a better choice for not feeling hungry than a sugary cereal. But the problem is that the kids say that these low glycemic breakfasts aren't -- don't taste as good.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes.
FRYHOFER: So they like to add a little extra sugar, and that's OK.
COSTELLO: Is that OK? What if you add like Sweet 'N Low? Is that different from sugar or does that do the same thing? FRYHOFER: Well, it's different from sugar. It doesn't have the calories. But you know that. But let's take a look at some common breakfast choices and their glycemic index. The Corn Flakes are pretty high. The muesli and the bran cereals are much lower, as are fruits, apples and milk. So that's, that can give you a little bit of a guide.
COSTELLO: Well, you're talking about the glycemic index, but when you look at the nutrition labels in the grocery store, that's not listed on there. So how do you know which foods to buy?
FRYHOFER: Well, Carol, that's a great question. The best thing to do is to look for the processing. Generally foods that -- the less processing, the better. Processing tends to remove the outer bran and inner germ layer of the grain kernel and this can cause bigger spikes in the blood sugar. Also, you need to try to limit concentrated sugars, as well.
COSTELLO: Oatmeal, oatmeal.
FRYHOFER: Oatmeal is very good.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes, that's excellent.
FRYHOFER: It sticks to your ribs, right?
COSTELLO: It certainly does, and more.
Thanks.
Dr. Sandy Fryhofer live this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
