A recent study by Aarhus University recommends that looking at repeated images of food can lead to a sense of satiety, lowering the part size people pick to take in. The results may have ramifications for weight-loss methods and the role of food advertisements on social media, especially provided the pervasiveness of food imagery in todays digital age.
Many of the food images are uploaded to sell specific foods.” We understand from previous studies that images of various types of food do not have the exact same effect on satiety. And the reason why we become too fat is that we eat too much food and too much unhealthy food and we do not take sufficient exercise.
New research study from Aarhus University now reveals that the images can actually have the opposite result. A minimum of if we see images of the same product repeatedly.
A variety of experiments expose that we can get a sense of satiety if we see the same image more 30 times. Tjark Andersen, who just recently safeguarded his PhD at Department of Food Science at Aarhus University, explains more.
” In our experiments, we showed that when the individuals saw the exact same food picture 30 times, they felt more satiated than before they had actually seen the photo. The individuals who were revealed the picture lots of times also chose a smaller sized portion than those who had only seen the photo 3 times, when we consequently asked about the size of part they wanted,” he says.
The research study found that individuals who were revealed the exact same food image 30 times felt more satiated and selected smaller portions than those who saw the image just 3 times.
Deceiving your brain into sensation complete
It may sound unusual that the individuals felt complete without really eating anything. This is truly quite natural, discusses Tjark Andersen. How we consider food has a large impact on our appetite.
” Your cravings is more closely related to your cognitive perception than the majority of us think. How we consider our food is very crucial,” he states, and continues:
” Studies have revealed that if you make people knowledgeable about different colors of Jelly Beans, even if they have eaten all they can in red Jelly Beans, will still want the yellow ones. Even if both colors taste entirely the same.”
Within brain research, these findings are described with the so-called grounded cognition theory. If you imagine putting your teeth in a juicy apple, the very same areas of the brain are promoted as if you actually take a bite of an apple.
” You will get a physiological reaction to something you have only thought about. Thats why we can feel fully satisfied without consuming anything,” he says.
A large online experiment
Tjark Andersen and his colleagues are not the first to discover that we can get feel full by looking at pictures of food. Other research study groups have previously revealed this.
The new research from Aarhus University is that they examined the number of repetitions required– and whether variation in the images eliminates the sense of satiety.
” We understand from previous studies that pictures of different types of food dont have the exact same impact on satiety. Thats why you can actually feel full after the main dish but still have room for dessert. Sweet things are a completely different kind of food,” he says.
To investigate whether variation in food completely gets rid of the sense of satiety, Tjark Andersen and his associates designed a variety of online experiments. They wound up getting more than 1,000 individuals through their digital experiments.
First, they revealed an image of simply orange M&M s. Some individuals were shown the image three times, others 30 times. The group that saw most photos the M&M felt most satiated afterward, discusses Tjark Andersen.
” They needed to respond to how numerous M&M s between 1 and 10 they wanted. The group which had seen 30 images of orange chocolate buttons, picked a smaller sized amount than the other two groups.”
Later, they repeated the experiment. This time with M&M s in different colors. The colors did not change the outcome.
They replaced the M&M s with Skittles. Unlike M&S s, Skittles taste various depending upon the color.
” If the color didnt play a function, it should be the thought of taste. However we found no significant result here either. This suggests that more specifications than simply color and flavor have to change before we can make an impact on satiety,” he describes.
Might be utilized as a weight-loss strategy
Since 1975, the number of overweight individuals worldwide has actually tripled. According to the WHO, obesity is among the most significant health obstacles facing humans. And the factor why we end up being too fat is that we consume excessive food and too much junk food and we do not take adequate exercise.
This is where Tjark Andersens outcomes enter into play. Maybe they can be applied as a method to manage appetite, he says.
” Think if you developed an app based on a Google search. Lets say you wanted pizza. You open the app. Choose pizza– and it reveals a great deal of pictures of pizza while you envision consuming it. In this way, you might get a sense of satiety and possibly just stop wanting pizza.”
Perhaps his results can best be used to guarantee that you do not begin a meal. The individuals in the study just chose a little fewer Skittles or M&M s, representing less than 50 calories.
” You wont save numerous calories unless you entirely avoid beginning a meal. But maybe the method can be used for this too. It d be interesting to investigate,” he says.
Social network are overruning with food
Tjark Andersen and a variety of other researchers are studying how food ads on social media affect us, because we are continuously being faced with delicious food.
A couple of years earlier, an American research study group searched for out how lots of ads with food we come across typically when we are on social networks. The researchers kept track of a number of youths and mapped out the material they met.
Typically, the youths saw 6.1 of food-related posts in 12 hours. The vast bulk of the posts were images of food– and more than a third were about desserts or other sweet food.
The internet and, in particular, social media can be a contributing factor in our ending up being progressively obese. However it may also be the option.
Just the future will tell.
Reference: “Imagined eating– An investigation of priming and sensory-specific satiety” by T. Andersen, D.V. Byrne and Q.J. Wang, 15 December 2022, Appetite.DOI: 10.1016/ j.appet.2022.106421.
A current study by Aarhus University suggests that taking a look at recurring images of food can lead to a sense of satiety, minimizing the portion size people pick to take in. The research builds on the grounded cognition theory, recommending that cognitive understanding strongly affects appetite. The outcomes may have ramifications for weight-loss strategies and the function of food advertisements on social networks, particularly offered the pervasiveness of food images in todays digital age.
Experiment results might result in a brand-new form of treatment for overeating.
Research from Aarhus University has found that duplicated exposure to pictures of the very same food can cause a sense of satiety and reduce part sizes, potentially providing a brand-new avenue for weight-loss techniques and reevaluating the impact of food imagery in digital marketing.
The web is overruning with images of food: On news websites, social media, and the banner ads that pop up everywhere.
A number of the food images are submitted to sell particular foods. The concept is that the images on Facebook or Instagram will make us yearn for a Mcdonalds burger. To put it simply, the image awakens our hunger.
