New York - Men are better at suppressing their hunger than women, according to a new study.

Scientists at the Brookhaven National Laboratory asked male and female volunteers to resist hunger when presented with their favorite foods

But when subjects practiced cognitive inhibition, the differences were apparent. While the technique suppressed hunger in both genders, the technique significantly lowered the desire for food only in men.

“Our findings of a lack of response to inhibition in women are consistent with behavioural studies showing significantly higher scores in disinhibition (tendency to overeat in response to food stimuli when presented with palatable food or under emotional distress) in women than in men,” the authors wrote. “The decreased inhibitory control in women could underlie their lower success in losing weight while dieting when compared with men.”

The study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.