The hormone is called PYY3-36. It is secreted from the cells of the small intestine in response to food and reaches the brain, where it stops the feeling of hunger.
Scientists have identified a hormone that causes a feeling of satiety. "It prevents you from feeling hungry," said the head of the research team, Dr. Steven Bloom from Imperial College London, to the Washington Post newspaper. "It controls us after every meal," he added.
The hormone is called PYY3-36. It is secreted from the cells of the small intestine in response to food and reaches the brain, where it stops the feeling of hunger, Bloom said. According to him, "foods rich in fiber (such as vegetables), which move down the intestine before being fully digested, naturally increase the production of the hormone. This, in contrast to fast food, which mostly dissolves in the stomach."
The researchers injected the volunteers with the hormone and offered them to eat as they wished two hours later. The participants consumed approximately 33% fewer calories than they did when they did not receive the hormone. The feeling of satiety lasted about 12 hours. The research findings were published yesterday in the scientific journal "Nature".
Bloom hopes that it will be possible to develop pills that will eliminate the hormone, but Dr. Michael Schwartz from the University of Washington in Seattle said that "a conscious decision to eat, which is influenced by emotions, can overcome the effect of the hormone."
by Tamara Traubman
