Abstract
Research shows that many small changes to the environment impact one’s eating behavior. The aim of this study was to examine whether the type of audio transmission would affect snack intake depending on the degree of immersion. A sample of 174 university students were randomized to either viewing a movie wearing headphones or listening over loud speakers while consuming a snack of their choice. Significant differences were found with more snacks consumed in the group without headphones compared to the group wearing headphones. Particularly women tend to eat less (about 10% of the offered snack less) when wearing headphones while viewing a movie. The results seem to indicate that audio transmission mode might impact eating behavior.
Highlights
Given the continuous rise of overweight and obesity prevalence globally, scientists have started to study the impact of the eating environment on food intake more intensively [1,2]
For instance, examined the influence of television viewing and media use on food intake [6, 7] and experimental studies have tested the impact of distraction via music or television viewing while consuming a meal [8,9,10]
Listening to music, watching television or playing video games while eating appear to be distracting activities associated with increased food intake [11,12,13]
Summary
Given the continuous rise of overweight and obesity prevalence globally, scientists have started to study the impact of the eating environment on food intake more intensively [1,2]. Intervention studies have often included the reduction of activities such as television viewing or video game playing as approaches to reduce weight or prevent weight gain in children and adults [14,15,16]. While these activities are considered sedentary activities and not recommended for a healthy active lifestyle, they seem to be adding additional calories to the overall food intake by increased total intake [14, 17], increased snacking frequency [18], and by a greater exposure
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