Vinegar: A Dieter's Friend?

For those of you just joining us, I am recapping some of the things I've learned this year (so far) from my favorite little magazine Reader's Digest.

Today's fact comes from April's issue in an article about their new book, The Digest Diet. It explains the health benefits of eating vinegar (their example was in a salad dressing):

[Why do salads at the beginning of meals starves off hunger?] One reason is that salads are a great source of fiber: lettuce greens, carrots, tomatoes, and the like all have plenty of this macronutrient. Fiber's effects on increasing feelings of satiety are well documented. 

The surprise here? The vinegar that comes along for the ride in salad dressing also helps you feel full. Research has shown that vinegar can lessen the glycemic effect of a meal (meaning it tends to not spike your blood sugar), which has been linked to satiety that reduces food intake. Vinegar may also prevent body-fat accumulation, according to a 2009 animal study by Japanese researchers. Mice that were fed acetic acid, the main component of vinegar, for six weeks accumulated less body fat.

Not a bad condiment! Especially paired with something with fiber, it appears.

If you don't like salad, though, snacking on pickles or pickled things can accomplish the same goal. Or there is a long list of vinegar-based recipes on homecooking.about.com if you're interested!