Researchers invited 37 men and women to a simple lunch of penne pasta, snack tomatoes, pesto, oregano and basil.
One time, the meal was described as “light” and not designed to fill them up. Another time, they were told the same meal was created to be “filling.”
Overall, diners ate more when the meal was labeled “light.” They also said they felt less full.
“It suggests that if you have this preconception the meal you’re about to eat is going to be really filling, then maybe you’ll eat less of it,” said study co-author Paige Cunningham, a doctoral student in nutrition sciences at Penn State University. “And if the opposite is true, if you perceive the meal to be light and not quite as filling, then maybe you’ll eat slightly more of that.”
For the study, the researchers recruited 18 women and 19 men through ads and posters, excluding those whose sense of fullness or taste might be affected by particular dietary habits or health issues. Participants ranged in age from 18 to 65.
After eating, participants were asked a number of questions. Among them: “How filling did you find this pasta salad?” and “How many calories do you think you consumed?” They were also asked “How important is your health to you?”
Researchers from Maastricht University in the Netherlands repeated the same experiment. Though it’s not clear whether the findings can be generalized to other locations, Cunningham said they are exciting.
