1. Why Do I Overeat Only At Night?
2. Does Chewing More Trigger Weight Loss?
3. Help! My Good Cholesterol Is Too Low!

Why Do I Overeat Only At Night?   I’ve been stuck in a strange eating pattern: I’m never hungry during the day, but I’m ravenous at night.  I just can’t stop eating, even waking up in the wee hours to head into the kitchen to scrounge for snacks.  As a result, I’ve gained almost 45 pounds—which adds even more stress to my already hectic life.  What could be going on? 

All signs point to night-eating syndrome (NES), in which people consume more than half of their daily food intake after 6 P.M.  Its main culprit is stress, and considering women’s busy lifestyles, it’s no surprise that NES is on the rise in women.  The antidote: 30 minutes of moderate walking, which has proven to return eating patterns to normal by lowering the stress hormones cortisol and epinephrine.  No time for exercise?  Eat two daytime meals that incorporate foods rich in B complex vitamins.  These nutrients double the brain’s production of stress-reducing serotonin. 

Does Chewing More Trigger Weight Loss?   My coworker has been going on and on about this new “diet” where all she does is chew each bite of food 20 times.  The weird thing is, it’s working: She’s dropped two pant sizes in a month with no stress whatsoever, and she can eat anything she wants as long as she chews it well.  I’ve been struggling to lose 20 pounds, but this diet sounds pretty corny.  Do you think it really helps? 

It certainly could.  This old-fashioned strategy of chewing at least 15 times per bite promotes the quick onset of a feeling of fullness, causing people to eat up to 40 percent fewer calories per meal, according to research at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston.  The reason: Thorough chewing releases 50 percent more nutrients in the first minute the food reaches the stomach.  This increases blood flow to the digestive organs to instantly raise metabolism, plus it enables the appetite centers of the brain to register satiety before excess food is consumed.  The result: effortless weight loss—no dieting required!    

Help!  My Good Cholesterol Is Too Low!   When I went for my annual checkup last week, my doctor told me that my good cholesterol is too low.  I never imagined that could be a problem for me since high cholesterol runs in my family.  But everything I read on the topic only focuses on lowering the bad kind.  Is there anything I can do to raise my good cholesterol? 

Great question!  Even adding just small amounts of healthy monounsaturated fats (MUFAs) to your diet can raise good (HDL) cholesterol by eight or more points.  Some excellent MUFA sources are olives, avocados, macadamia nuts and their respective oils, which you can use in soups and sautéed dishes or as dressing on salads and already-cooked dishes.  But keep in mind that MUFA sources are calorie-dense, so consume just one to three servings daily to get the health-enhancing benefits without affecting your waistline.