One Quirky Trick To Lose Weight Right Now

One of my favorite holiday rituals is wrapping presents. Which might be why I was drawn to this recent study that showed to lose weight, we should be wrapping our food, too.

In the scientific journal Appetite, new research showed that foods that come in a shell or a wrapper may help you eat less. Participants in the study who snacked on pistachios in the shell ate 41 percent fewer nuts than those who ate already shelled nuts. Best of all? The group that ate less felt just as satisfied! The author concluded that having to work a bit harder to get to your food gives your body enough time to register satisfaction and fullness. Plus, seeing the pile of shells or wrappers gives you a visual cue of how much you’ve already eaten, and provides you with a secondary clue of when it’s time to stop.

Could this work with other foods? I'm thinking yes. Here are my favorite wrapped-up treats, all delicious and all containing fat releasing power to coax your body into shedding pounds quickly and effectively. (Just remember: Hershey's Kisses and pigs in a blanket don't count for the purposes of healthy eating!)

1. Roasted chestnuts

This holiday treat seems to be available on every corner in New York this time of year, but you can also find them at your local grocery and pop in the oven yourself. High in fiber, these tree nuts fill you up to help prevent overeating. They also are loaded with the trace mineral manganese—an antioxidant which soaks up free radicals in your body, and has been shown to lower risk for cancer and heart disease.

2. Peel-n-eat shrimp

Shrimp are lean and very high in protein, which helps leave you feeling satisfied. Protein also boosts fat burn, and the time it takes you to crack their shells forces you to slow down and, in turn, reduce the amount you eat in a serving.

3. Peanuts in the shell

Loaded with fiber and healthy fats, peanuts are a delicious snack. You don't even need a nutcracker to get these guys out of their shells.

4. Edamame

Frozen or fresh, this fun green bean is a staple in my household and it's one of the foods we found to be a fat releaser in researching our best-selling book The Digest Diet. Pop the beans right in your mouth, or shell them and mash with parmesan for a creamy dip.

5. Clementines

I love so many citrus fruits—from grapefruits to limes—for their fat releasing vitamin C, but clementines, in season during the winter, are among my favorite. These aromatic mandarin oranges are usually seedless (look for those that come from Spain), and have only 35 calories each, making them a juicy snack at any time of day.

MORE FROM READER’S DIGEST

10 Healthy Fast Food Choices That Satisfy Any Cravings

15 Foods You Should Never Buy Again

Mindful Eating: How to Be More Satisfied with Less Food

19 Ways to Torch 200 Calories

Take advantage of this exclusive offer: