New research from the University of Haifa reveals that changing our interpretation of high-calorie food may reduce appetite, but at the same time cause general negative feelings – which raises questions about the safety of the method in clinical use for weight loss.
Over the past decade, many studies have attempted to understand how the way we think about food affects our desire to eat it. Studies have shown that when we see high-calorie food, we can change our interpretation of it to reduce our attraction to it. For example, imagine that it will make us fat, that it is disgusting, or that we are already full and do not need it. Studies have shown that after such a change in interpretation, people actually report less appetite. In light of this, some researchers have suggested using this technique to help people with obesity control their eating. But wait – is this really a helpful approach, or could it be problematic?
In a study led by Maram Saad, a doctoral student in clinical psychology in the Behavioral Psychopathology Laboratory under the supervision of Prof. Noam Weinbach, School of Psychological Sciences, University of Haifa, wanted to test whether changing the interpretation of food not only reduces appetite, but also negatively affects emotional state. To test this, they conducted an experiment in which participants were exposed to their favorite high-calorie foods. Sometimes they asked them to think about the food in a negative way – for example, imagining that it would make them gain weight, that it was disgusting, or that they were already full. Other times, they simply looked at the food naturally, without changing their thinking about it.
The study was published in the journal Appetite and can be downloaded atNext link.
What did the researchers discover?
After changing their interpretation of food, participants began to perceive the world as more negative. When they were shown completely neutral images (for example, a person sitting on a bench), they tended to rate them as more negative than when they did not change their interpretation of food. That is, after “dark glasses” on food, they also saw the whole world in a more gloomy way.
In another experiment within the same study, they found that this emotional change is exactly what led to the decrease in appetite. In other words, the reason people wanted to eat less after changing their interpretation of food was that they simply felt more emotionally negative.
So what does this mean?
The researchers' findings raise cautionary tales about using this technique for weight loss. Changing the way we think about food is a powerful tool, but it also resembles strategies that characterize eating disorders, in which people develop unhealthy eating behaviors in an attempt to control their eating by creating negative emotions. Therefore, before recommending such techniques, it is important to make sure that they do not cause more harm than good, and that they do not lead to further emotional distress or unhealthy eating habits.
So is it worth thinking negatively about high-calorie foods? Maybe not always. Sometimes, the path to balanced eating is actually through a more balanced and relaxed approach to food – not through intimidation or feelings of guilt.
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