EPIC modification of within‐meal eating behaviors for healthy weight management

Abstract

Improving within‐meal eating behaviors has been shown to reduce food intake in the laboratory. The objective of this study was to extend these findings to individuals interested in healthy weight management. A 5‐week one‐on‐one intervention of modifying within‐meal eating behaviors, the Eating Pace Instructional Classes (EPIC), was developed. Twenty‐three healthy women (20.0±2.6 years, with body mass index 31.8±2.6 kg/m2) were randomized into intervention or non‐intervention groups. Assessment visits before and after the intervention included an ad libitum lunch from which meal duration and intake were covertly measured. Repeated‐measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicated that eating rate significantly decreased (F=5.29; p=.032) and energy intake significantly decreased (F=6.19; p=.022) after participation in the EPIC intervention. Paired‐samples t‐tests indicated a significant increase in meal duration for the experimental group (t=−2.34; p=.039) but not for the control group (t=‐.83; p=.428) after participation in the EPIC intervention. Our EPIC approach is successful at slowing eating and lowering food intake in young women. Future studies should test other delivery methods and apply EPIC approaches to more diverse community populations for weight management and obesity prevention. The current work was supported by a CELS CARES research grant from the University of Rhode Island.