Creamy butter or ice cream versus a crunchy granola bar: a new study suggests that the texture of foods influences people’s dieting choices.
“We studied the link between
how a food feels in your mouth and the amount we eat, the types of food
we choose, and how many calories we think we are consuming,” wrote study
authors Dipayan Biswas and Courtney Szocs, both from the University of South Florida, and others.
The study
In one experiment, participants
were asked to sample foods that had soft, smooth, hard or rough
textures and then estimate their calorie amounts.
In another test, volunteers
were asked to watch and rate a number of television ads, thinking that
was the test. But they were also given cups with bite-sized brownies as
a “thank you” for their time. Half of the participants were also asked
about the amount of calories in the brownies.
Some of the participants
received softer-textured brownies while the other half got crunchier
brownies. People who had been asked about the calories in the brownies
which forced them to focus on caloric intake — ate more of the crunchy
brownies than soft. On the other hand, those whose
minds weren’t focused on calories tended to eat more of the soft
brownies, the investigators found.
The researchers believe this is due to "oral haptics–calorie
estimation," which is the relationship between how much you chew a food
and how you perceive the calories. The more you chew, the fewer calories
you believe a food has.
Bottom line
As a general rule most people would agree that raw veggies, i.e. a hard
food, are low in calories. But maybe the reason you find it difficult to
put down your fork (or spoon) down when eating mashed potatoes or ice
cream isn’t only the taste that does it, but also the texture.
Interesting, but not all soft
foods are high in calories. For example, oatmeal and yogurt are
excellent meal choices. Similarly, not all hard foods are low in
calories—pretzels, rock candy, and licorice all come to mind for me. As a
general rule, though, people eat slower when consuming
hard foods, which could lead to less consumption and fewer calories by
default.
Really,
this area of research needs to be further explored. As the study authors
conclude, "Understanding how the texture of food can influence calorie
perceptions, food choice, and consumption amount can help nudge
consumers towards making healthier choices."