5 Meal Hacks That Help You Eat More Nutrients Without Eating More Food

If you want to fuel up your body with the vitamins and nutrients it needs, you have to think smarter—not more.

“Think of your body as a car with a small gas tank,” says Jessica Crandall, R.D.N. and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. “If you try to put in too much fuel at once, it’s not going to do anything for you.”

That means you need to optimize your meals, not super size them.

When you eat, how much you eat, and even what kind of food combinations you put together, can have an effect on nutrient absorption, says food scientist Joy Dubost, Ph.D., R.D.

When you properly absorb nutrients, your body can use vitamins, minerals, proteins, fats, and other food components more effectively. That means your body will hum along more efficiently—and you’ll feel better, too. (Here are 13 easy ways to get more protein in your diet.)

Here, 5 hacks that can boost your nutrient intake without making your belly bulge.

MEAL HACK#1: EAT SMALLER MEALS WITH PROTEIN THROUGHOUT THE DAY.

The “more meals” strategy is often touted for weight loss, because it can keep your blood sugar steady and decrease hunger spikes.

But it can also be beneficial for nutrient timing, says Crandall. That’s because eating every 4 to 6 hours allows your digestive system—as well as your liver and pancreas, which handle toxins and regulate insulin, respectively—to operate more efficiently.

Since they’re not being overloaded with work—say, a huge meal they need to break down— they’re able to better absorb the nutrients that are passing through.

When you’re putting together your meals, aim to pack in at least 30 grams of protein per meal, according to Men’s Health nutrition advisor Mike Roussell, Ph.D.

That amount of protein is the benchmark for muscle building, but it’s also the dose in which you start getting the satiating effect of protein, he says.

By increasing protein along with meal frequency, you may also decrease body fat, according to a 2013 study published in Obesity.

Too much body fat can increase levels of inflammation in your body, Crandall says. And that can prevent you from effectively absorbing nutrients like vitamins and minerals.

MEAL HACK #2: ADD IN A LITTLE GOOD FAT.

Healthy fat—think olive oil or avocadoes—helps to “unlock” the antioxidants and vitamins in vegetables.

That’s because some vitamins like carotenoids, a type of vitamin A found in vegetables like carrots and spinach, are fat soluble, says Crandall. That means fat allows them to dissolve, which frees them up to be absorbed in your body.

In fact, researchers from Iowa State University discovered that people absorbed more of carotenoid antioxidants after eating a spinach, romaine, tomato, and carrot salad topped with full-fat dressing than they did with reduced-fat or fat-free dressings.

Best of all, it doesn’t even take much fat to boost your absorption rate, Crandall adds.

Throw an ounce of almonds or just 1/5 of an avocado on a salad and you’re there. Even a drizzle of olive oil can do the nutrient lock-picking with vegetables.

MEAL HACK #3: CHEW MORE THOROUGHLY.

Wolf down your food and you might be swallowing away a bunch of its nutritional benefits.

That’s because when you chew thoroughly, you allow enzymes in your saliva—like amylase and lingual lipase—to start breaking down your food. This kicks off the digestion of sugars, starches, fats, and proteins, says Dubost.

As a result, the nutrients are able to be better absorbed throughout your entire gastrointestinal region, she says. That’s better than having the food wait to broken down by your stomach acid alone, which may not do as thorough a job.

Dubbost suggests chewing anywhere from 20 to 50 times with each mouthful to gain the greatest nutritional boost.

In fact, a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that people who chewed almond 40 times before swallowing excreted less fat in their feces than those who chewed only 10 times—meaning the long chewers were absorbing more of the healthy fats in their bodies.

Plus, adequate chewing can have a benefit for your belly, too. In that study, people who chewed the almonds 40 times experienced less hunger than those who chewed 25 times or fewer.