Background: Snacks, stress, and parties all contribute to the weight gain – the elusive “Freshman 15” – that some college-goers unfortunately experience. This report examines how ala cart snack choice changes on a university campus during each progressing week of the academic calendar....

Background: Short-term food deprivation of 18-24 hours is fairly common. It can be medically imposed before blood draws or surgery, or it can be self-imposed in the case of serious dieting, religious fasts, and chaotic work schedules. While assumed that fasting biases brain reward systems...

This study addresses two questions about sub-packaging: 1) Do 100-calorie packages reduce the intake of overweight individuals more than normal-weight individuals? 2) Do they enable a person to accurately track intake? Thirty-seven undergraduates were randomly given either four 100-calorie...

Background: Past research has shown that promotional messages such as food advertising influence food consumption. However, what has gone largely unexplored is the effect of exercise advertising on food intake. This study experimentally tested the effects of exposure to exercise commercials on...

Fast food patronage is a frequent reality for many children and their parents. Although there are increasingly healthier options being offered as alternatives for regular menu items (apple slices instead of French fries), they are seldom selected by the children. We investigated whether either...

Background and objectives: Recent studies have emphasized that a size-contrast illusion leads unknowingly consumers to serve and eat more food when using larger dinner plates and serving spoons. Such a size-contrast illusion would not, however, be operating when one serves from a common serving...

There is a great deal of research suggesting that television (TV) viewing is associated with increased food intake. However, research on the relationship between TV content and food intake is limited. First, this study examined whether people ate more when TV content is related to food. Second,...

Background: Whether a person perceives an eating occasion – such as a reception or party – is a meal or a snack could determine what and how much they eat. The extent to which they are influenced, however, could be moderated by one’s motivational state and will be particularly strong among...