Including a tossed salad as a pre-meal appetizer is a delicious and super-nutritious means to help you eat less. In fact, if you dress your salad with a little olive-oil based vinaigrette, this simple mealtime tactic can rein in your appetite through five separate means:

1. The bulkiness of the lettuce and raw veggies rapidly fills the stomach and acutely reduces appetite, and subsequent mealtime intake.
2. The fat from the olive oil slows stomach emptying, which keeps you feeling fuller longer.
3. The oleic acid in the olive oil triggers a rapid and robust release of the “feel-full” hormone, CCK.
4. The vinegar’s acetic acid slows digestion, reducing the glycemic response of mealtime carbs, and it kicks up your metabolism a bit.
5. The raw vegetables require lots of chewing which prolongs the time food engages with the mouth leading to greater oro-sensory satiety.