Abstract
ObjectiveObesity is often attributed to an addiction to food, and many people believe themselves to be “food addicts.” However, little is known about how such beliefs may affect dietary control and weight management. The current research examined the impact of experimentally manipulating participants' personal food addiction beliefs on eating behavior.MethodsIn two studies, female participants (study 1: N = 64; study 2: N = 90) completed food‐related computerized tasks and were given bogus feedback on their performance which indicated that they had high, low, or average food addiction tendencies. Food intake was then assessed in an ad libitum taste test. Dietary concern and time taken to complete the taste test were recorded in study 2.ResultsIn study 1, participants in the high‐addiction condition consumed fewer calories than those in the low‐addiction condition, F (1,60) = 7.61, P = 0.008, η p 2 = 0.11. Study 2 replicated and extended this finding, showing that the effect of the high‐addiction condition on food intake was mediated by increased dietary concern, which reduced the amount of time participants willingly spent exposed to the foods during the taste test, b = −0.06 (0.03), 95% confidence interval = −0.13 to −0.01.ConclusionsBelieving oneself to be a food addict is associated with short‐term dietary restriction. The longer‐term effects on weight management now warrant attention.
Highlights
Obesity continues to increase, with more than half of adults worldwide having overweight or obesity [1]
It is not possible to determine the direction of the results; calorie intake may have decreased in the high-addiction condition, increased in the lowaddiction condition, or both
Study 2 included a direct test of the hypothesis that believing oneself to be a food addict would decrease eating because it generates concern about one’s eating behavior
Summary
With more than half of adults worldwide having overweight or obesity [1]. Overeating and obesity are frequently attributed to a food-based addiction though this notion has been the source of considerable controversy within the scientific community [2,3,4]. Scientific understanding has not kept pace with the lay public’s enthusiasm for the concept of “food addiction” [5,6,7,8]. In a recent study, almost three quarters of participants believed that obesity is caused by an addiction to certain foods [7]. As many as 50% of people believe themselves to be food addicts [9,10]. Little is known about the potential impact of believing oneself to be a food addict on eating behavior
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