How Dieters Get Fooled Into Eating More

by Jason Best, Posted Apr 26th 2011 @ 11:00AM

jelly beans trick dieters Photo: Roxanne Cooke, Flickr

Bad news for dieters: According to a new study, you may be eating less healthy than you think you are -- all because you're on a diet.

Huh?

It's simple, really. If you're watching your weight, you're more likely to be conscious of how food is labeled and to pick foods that sound healthier. A "smoothie" is better than a "milkshake," right? "Veggie chips" are healthier than "potato chips."

Except when they aren't.

In a recent study published in the Journal of Consumer Research, researchers served up a plateful of vegetables, pasta, salami and cheese on a bed of romaine lettuce. To some study participants, the dish was presented as a "salad," and to others it was called "pasta." Dieters were wary when it was called "pasta," but presumably gobbled it up when it was identified as "salad."

Researchers also labeled the same candy (jelly beans, it seems) either "fruit chews" or "candy chews." So which one do you think dieters rated as more nutritious (and thus were willing to scarf down more of)? You guess it: the "fruit chews."

By and large, non-dieters rated the candy the same, no matter how it was labeled.

"Over time, dieters learn to focus on simply avoiding foods that they recognize as forbidden based on product name," the authors write. "Thus, dieters likely assume that an item assigned an unhealthy name (for example, pasta) is less healthy than an item assigned a healthy name (for example, salad), and they do not spend time considering other product information that might impact their product evaluations."

Just chalk it up as yet more scientific proof of how gullible people can be when it comes to food. Earlier this month, we reported on another study that showed unsuspecting consumers were more likely to rate the same foods as healthier and more tasty when they were called "organic."

Chew on This

Royal Wedding Cake Details Revealed! - YumSugar

Make Your Own Pop Tarts - CHOW
Denny's Introduces a Maple Bacon Sundae - Eater
Whole Foods Opening Bars in Stores - USA Today
Rules Of Bar Etiquette -- For The Bartender - HuffPost Food

Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

4-26-2011 @6:48PM JACKIE said... This might make more sense if the researchers had also profiled their dieters by their food knowledge. It appears that the folks they were studying know diddly about the food they're eating. Salad, schmalad. If you're watching your intake it's probably a good idea to cut back on the salami and be careful about the cheese no matter what the dish is called. Like potatoes, the pasta isn't the problem. It's what's on the pasta that can break you. Stick with the marinara or a spiced wine vinegar dressing and skip the Alfredo sauce. And believing jelly bellies are "fruit chews" is pure wishful thinking.
Reply

Vote upVote downReport

4-26-2011 @9:25PM SueT said... Eat from the perimeter of the supermarket. That's my 2 cents.
Reply

Vote upVote downReport

4-27-2011 @1:27AM Shawn said... Eat what you want...watch your calorie intake. yes, count calories. I have done this for over 1 1/2 years and have lost 96 pounds. All I do is walk and don't go over 1200-1300 cal. per day. I do have a cheat day, I might even have 2000+ calories that day. But brfore you do anything you should know your BMR and RMR or you will get no where.
Reply