Does Food Advertising Make You Eat More? – Ajit Patel Goldshield
Every day, you are
surrounded with images of appetising and often unhealthy food on TV, billboards, magazines and
websites – everywhere you look, in fact. An article in the journal ‘Psychology
& Health’ raises questions about
how this constant exposure to food affects the way we eat.
Professor Eva Kemps’ team from
Flinders University, Australia, took two groups of females, one of which was
overweight, and one of average weight,
and split them into two groups. Half of each group watched a mixture of food
and non-food related advertising, while the other half watched only non-food
related ads. They were then asked to complete a list of unfinished words, all
of which had the potential to be food related, and to record their level of
desire to eat.
In both cases, those shown food
ads produced more food-related words, suggesting that the advertising really
does activate increased food-related thoughts – perhaps not surprising given
the way they can make you salivate and fancy what you’ve seen. Women
who were overweight, however, reported a stronger desire to eat after watching
food ads than those of normal weight.
The researchers called for more research to help dysfunctional eaters by
training them to avoid food in response to food cues.
According to health and wellness
experts, willpower isn’t a muscle that needs to be exercised, it’s a state of
mind affected by your environment. They suggest seven ways to help you beat a
lack of will power when trying to eat healthily
and get fit.
You only need willpower during times
of temptation. If you’re not being tempted, then you don’t need willpower. So
consider how you can remove temptation from any environments,
which you can control. Start with your own home and your office space. For
example, if you don’t want to find yourself eating a whole packet of chocolate biscuits at
your desk, buy individually wrapped ones, one at a time. Then it doesn’t matter
if you feel you have no willpower
– you won’t need it, there’ll be nothing to tempt you.
Be aware that many salty and sugary foods are purposely
formulated to be moreish. The problem isn’t you; it’s the food. So ditch the
guilt, but ditch these foods, too. Know that you are never going to be able to
flex that imaginary mental muscle
enough to eat them in moderation, so keep them for a very occasional treat.
If you do eat a sugary
or high-carbohydrate snack or meal, don’t be surprised if shortly afterwards
your energy levels slump and your mind turns to food.
Those cravings aren’t a lack of mental muscle but a physical condition. So try
to avoid meals and snacks which are mainly carbohydrate and choose foods
which have a good proportion of protein and good fats; these will give you a
more prolonged, steady supply of energy
and most importantly no extreme blood sugar peaks and troughs.
If you’re trying to stick to an exercise
regime, make it as pleasant as possible for yourself. Invest in some
well-fitting kit in appealing colours – you’ll enjoy wearing it and you’ll feel
so much better about yourself when you’re exercising.
If you like to listen to music make sure you’ve got your most uplifting music
on your iPod when exercising. Exercise does not have to be painful, boring or
unpleasant. So if you don’t like running – don’t go running. When you find
something you enjoy,
it won’t feel like a chore, and you’ll be much more likely to stick with it.
Make sure you fully commit to your plans. Remove the word ‘try’ from ‘I’m going
to try to go to the gym three times
this week’. Tell others what you intend to do – it’s always easier to let
yourself down than it is to let others down.
Surround yourself with supportive and
positive people.
If your friends are constantly trying to tempt you to eat what they know you
don’t want to eat, then you’re going to struggle. Ask for their support and if
they are good
friends they should be happy to give it.
Finally, understand that healthy
living does not have to be 100 per cent perfect. Aim for 80-90 per cent
healthy, and don’t beat yourself up for the occasional treat. If you’re eating a
bar of your favourite chocolate
with a side order of guilt, you won’t enjoy it, and what’s the point of that?
Savour it instead, embrace the pleasure it’s giving you, and know that it’s not
the end of your healthy
intentions – pleasure is a nutrient too.
So the next time you’re feeling
guilty about having no willpower,
give yourself a break. Expend that energy on developing a different approach
instead. Remove the temptations, make exercise
as enjoyable as possible, and commit fully to your plans. Add supportive
friends and the occasional guilt-free treat to that mix and you have a recipe
for success, which doesn’t involve an imaginary mental muscle.
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