Subsequent Snack Intake Research Articles

Imagine this: Visualising a recent meal as bigger reduces subsequent snack intake

Remembering a recent meal reduces subsequent intake of palatable snacks (i.e. the meal-recall effect), however, little is known about the factors which can potentiate this effect. The present experiment investigated whether a stronger meal-recall effect would be observed if recent consumption would be recalled in greater detail, than if it was recalled briefly. Moreover, it was investigated whether imagining a meal as bigger and more satiating than in reality could potentiate the meal-recall effect, and lead to lower intake. It was also explored whether mental visualisation tasks of a recent meal would affect the remembered portion size. Participants (N = 151) ate lunch at the laboratory, and then returned 3 h later to perform the imagination tasks and to participate in a bogus taste test (during which intake was covertly measured). Participants in the two main imagination task groups recalled the lunch meal and then either recalled the consumption episode in great detail or imagined the meal was larger and more filling than in reality. The results showed that imagining a recent meal as larger significantly reduced the quantity of biscuits eaten. However, contrary to the hypotheses, recalling a consumption episode in detail did not decrease snack intake. It was also shown that imagining a recent meal as larger than in reality did not lead participants to overestimate the true size of the meal. In fact, portion size estimations were significantly underestimated in that group. There were no significant estimation differences in any of the other groups. The results of this study suggest that the meal-recall effect can be an effective strategy to reduce food intake and may be amenable to strategic manipulation to enhance efficacy, but seems prone to disruption.

How is Satiety Affected When Consuming Food While Working on A Computer?

More people working at offices are choosing to eat meals at their desks, making “desktop dining” an increasingly common phenomenon. Previous studies have reported that environmental distractors, such as television viewing, can influence meal intake and subsequent snack intake. However, the impact of stressful mental tasks on eating behavior has received relatively less attention, focusing only on subsequent meal intake or concurrent snack intake. This study sets out to determine whether eating while working influenced current meal energy intake. This research also examined the relationship between dietary restraint status and energy intake. A crossover experimental design was employed requiring participants (14 males and 29 females) to eat pizza quietly and at rest (control), and while working on a computer (work). Measurements included BMI, energy intake, state anxiety, restrained eating behavior, stress levels (pre- and post-eating), and appetite (before and after both work and control sessions). The findings showed that consuming food while working on a computer significantly increased stress but had no influence on energy intake compared to the control condition. However, post-eating hunger levels were significantly higher in the work condition compared to the control condition. As expected, satiety levels decreased significantly from pre- to post-eating for both work and control conditions. In addition, no significant relationship was observed between restrained eating behavior and energy intake in both work and control conditions. These results suggest that eating while working affected satiety of normal weight participants, as indicated by the significant difference in post-meal satiety levels between work and control conditions.

Influence of documenting lunch menu details on subsequent snack intake

In this study we examined the effect on subsequent snack intake of having participants document their lunch menus. In Experiment 1, we asked all participants to have lunch as usual. However, some were instructed to document their lunch menus before eating. These participants demonstrated lower snack intake than control condition participants who had not documented their lunch menus. In Experiment 2, participants in both groups ate snacks freely while viewing TV, which functioned as a stimulus interfering with recall of lunch menus. There was no difference in snack intake between participants who had documented their lunch menus and those who had not.

Influence of recording lunch menu on subsequent snack intake during television viewing

Influence of recording lunch menu on subsequent snack intake during television viewing

Pre-exposure to diet-congruent food reduces energy intake in restrained dieting women

Dietary restriction often fails in the face of tempting and palatable foods; however there is evidence that exposure to diet-congruent cues, such as foods associated with ‘slimming’ may facilitate control over food intake. The present study examined the effect of exposure to a diet-congruent food on subsequent energy intake in active dieters. Using a within-subjects design, restrained eaters who were currently on a diet (n=13) and unrestrained non-dieters (n=21) were exposed to a tempting food cue (chocolate) and a diet-congruent food cue (fruit orange) on two separate testing sessions, and subsequent snack intake was measured. Unrestrained non-dieters consumed similar amounts of snack food across conditions, whilst restrained dieters consumed 60% less chocolate (kcal) after exposure to the diet cue compared to the tempting cue. Exposure to a diet-congruent food cues may help dieters control energy intake when tempted by palatable food.

Resisting temptation. Can exposure to a healthy food cue prime dieters to resist overconsumption?

Dieters’ long term goals to lose weight often fail when opportunities to indulge in palatable and tempting foods activate competing hedonic goals. Restrained eating has been shown to break down in the face of tempting foods and the construct of disinhibition describes in part the tendency to overconsume when highly palatable foods are available. However, exposure to goal congruent cues can facilitate goal adherence such as restricting food intake. The present study examined the effect of pre-exposure to a diet related food cue on subsequent food intake in active dieters. Restrained eaters who were currently on a diet (n = 13) and unrestrained non-dieters (n = 21) were exposed to a tempting food cue (chocolate) and a diet food cue (fresh orange) on two separate testing sessions, and subsequent snack intake was measured. Restrained dieters consumed significantly less energy from the snack foods after pre-exposure to the diet food cue than the tempting food cue. In contrast, unrestrained non-dieters showed no significant difference in energy intake between conditions. These findings suggest that exposure to a diet related food cue can help dieters to resist highly palatable foods when in a tempting food environment.

Effects of chewing gum on short-term appetite regulation in moderately restrained eaters

Orosensory stimulation is an important contributing factor to the development of satiation. Providing orosensory stimulation with few calories may satisfy appetite and help to suppress cravings for high energy snacks. This may be a useful strategy for those motivated to lose or maintain weight. The present study tested the hypothesis that chewing sweetened gum will reduce subjective appetite and subsequent snack intake in moderately restrained eaters. Within-subjects, repeated measures study, sixty healthy participants (53 women; body mass index, in kg/m 2: 26.2 ± 4.5) came to the laboratory 4 times for a standard lunch. Immediately after this meal, participants rated hunger, appetite and cravings for sweet and salty snacks every hour until they returned to the laboratory 3 h later for snack. On two occasions during this 3 h period participants chewed gum for at least 15 min at hourly intervals (45 min) and on two occasions no gum was chewed. On two occasions salty snacks were offered and on two occasions sweet snacks were provided. A small but significant reduction in snack intake was observed, chewing gum reduced weight of snack consumed by 10% compared to no gum ( p < 0.05). Overall, chewing gum for at least 45 min significantly suppressed rated hunger, appetite and cravings for snacks and promoted fullness ( p < 0.05). This study demonstrated some benefit of chewing gum which could be of utility to those seeking an aid to appetite control.

Effects of chewing gum on specific macronutrient and total caloric intake in an afternoon snack

Hetherington and Boyland (2007) have reported that gum chewing in the afternoon after lunch produced a significant reduction in subsequent snack intake, compared to the control condition. The objective of the present study was to verify this observation and to assess specific macronutrient intake and total caloric intake after having chewed gum as compared with intake in the control, no‐gum condition. After consuming a standard lunch, subjects chewed gum for 15 minutes hourly for 3 hours and then were tested in a modified version of our Macronutrient Self‐Selection Paradigm (MSSP). The MSSP consisted of 12 snack foods in which macronutrient content was varied significantly and systematically in a 2 (Fat factor: High Fat and Low Fat) X 2 (Carbohydrate Factor: High Sugar and High Complex Carbohydrate) design. Results showed that, in the gum condition, subjects specifically decreased their caloric intake of high‐sugar, snack foods in comparison with their intake in the no‐gum condition. Intake of the other foods presented in the MSSP did not differ between the two conditions. These results suggest that chewing gum may be effective in the control of intake of sweet snacks and thereby would be useful in weight management. Funding provided by a research grant from the Wrigley Science Institute.

Cognitive influences on food intake: The effects of manipulating memory for recent eating

Recent evidence suggests that enhancing memory of the last meal decreases later snack intake, whereas disruption of encoding in memory of the last meal increases subsequent snack intake. Other studies have found that manipulating cognitions at the time of eating, such as beliefs about the timing and composition of meals, can affect subsequent intake. The effects of many of these cognitions are likely to depend on prior association in memory between situational and sensory cues and particular postingestional or affective consequences of eating. Hence, memory for the specific attributes of foods eaten in the recent past, and memory for the predicted consequences of eating acquired over repeated experiences are important influences on food intake. These data are consistent with evidence of hyperphagia in amnesic patients and laboratory animals with lesions to the hippocampus, an important substrate for learning and memory.

Recall of recent lunch and its effect on subsequent snack intake

Recall of food eaten at lunch decreases afternoon snack intake, suggesting that awareness of a recent eating episode may be an important factor influencing appetite. The aim of the present studies was to investigate whether the inhibitory effect of remembering a recent lunch meal on subsequent snack intake is dependent upon 1) the type and palatability of the snack offered; 2) participants' level of dietary restraint and tendency towards disinhibition; and 3) the delay between lunch and recall. Popcorn snacks differing in amount of added salt and rated palatability were offered to male participants in Experiment 1. Participants who recalled the lunch they had eaten that day consumed less of all types of popcorn than participants who recalled lunch eaten the previous day, suggesting that the effect of recent meal recall is not dependent upon the palatability of the snack food. In Experiment 2, a similar pattern of results was observed but only for women who scored low, and not high, on a measure of tendency toward dietary disinhibition, possibly because a tendency toward disinhibition is associated with impaired memory for the lunch. In Experiment 3, decreased cookie intake by women was observed after remembering today's lunch relative to a neutral control condition, but this effect was similarly only observed for participants scoring low in tendency toward disinhibition. In addition, the effect was dependent on the time elapsed between the lunch and recall, since intake was only reduced at a snack tasting session 3-hours post-lunch (when some forgetting of the meal occurred) and not 1-hour post-lunch. It is concluded that the inhibitory effect of recalling foods eaten at lunch on subsequent snack intake is a robust phenomenon that is related to memory of that lunch and is moderated by tendency toward dietary disinhibition.

Cognitive control of food intake: The effects of manipulating memory for recent eating.

The importance of memory in appetite control has been appreciated for some time, but previous work has focused on the influence of memory for the predicted consequences of eating acquired over repeated experiences, e.g. as in associative conditioning of flavor preferences. In contrast, there has been little investigation of the role of episodic memory. We have examined whether manipulating memory for the specific attributes of foods eaten recently affects subsequent consumption. Enhancing memory for recent eating by cueing participants to recall their lunchtime meal suppressed snack intake later that afternoon relative to an uncued group. This effect of meal recall was specific to food eaten that day, because asking participants to remember lunch consumed the previous day had no effect on subsequent snack intake. We have further shown that cued-recall of lunch does not decrease snack intake at a session 1-h post-lunch but does decrease intake 3-h post-lunch (when some forgetting of the meal is likely to have occurred). The delay-dependency of the effect suggests it is a memory-related phenomenon. Furthermore, we found that disrupting memory for a recent meal by distracting participants at lunch led to an increase in afternoon snack consumption compared with a non-distracted group. These data are consistent with reports of multiple meal consumption in amnesic patients who are unable to remember having just eaten. It is concluded that representation in memory of information relating to foods that have been eaten in the recent past may have a role to play in controlling everyday eating.

Preschoolers» Mid-afternoon Snack Intake is not Affected by Lunchtime Food Consumption

The purpose of this study was two-fold: to determine the contribution of mid-afternoon snack intake to total daily energy intake and to examine the effect of lunchtime eating on subsequent snack intake in preschool children. Lunch energy intake was manipulated by varying the energy content of the milk beverage served at lunch. Mid-afternoon snack consumption in 135 children, aged 18–66 months, offered chocolate-flavored or plain milk at lunch. Nutritious mid-morning snacks, lunches and mid-afternoon snacks were served on a rotating schedule 2 days per week for 12 weeks. The children were allowed to consume as much as they wanted of any food items served at lunch or snacktime, including the beverages. Although the children consumed significantly more energy during lunchtime meals at which sucrose-sweetened chocolate milk was served, their intake of the mid-afternoon snack was not affected by the type of milk beverage served or the energy consumed at lunch. All children consumed between 20 and 25% of their daily energy requirement at lunch and between 8 and 22% of their daily energy requirement during the mid-afternoon snack. Snacks are an important source of energy for young children, especially those under three years of age.