Skip the dip
By Penn State
The latest study conducted in the center, housed in the
College of Agricultural Sciences, investigated how eating behavior changes when
consumers are served a dip with a salty snack. The findings, available online
now and to be published in the November issue of Food Quality and
Preference, suggest that they eat more — a lot more. The chips and dip
together yielded a 77% greater caloric intake, and a faster total eating rate
compared to the just chips, no-dip control.
Study Findings on Chip and Dip Consumption
However, there was no difference in chip intake, pointed out
study corresponding author John Hayes, professor of food science and director
of the Penn State Sensory Evaluation Center.
“The most striking findings of our study is that people
didn’t eat fewer chips when dip was available — they ate the same amount of
chips, plus the dip,” he said. “This lack of compensation means that adding dip
to chips can substantially increase overall energy intake without people
realizing it.”
Intuitively, many people would guess that if we add something extra to a snack, like dip, people will compensate, and eat less of the main item, Hayes explained.
“But our research shows this is not the case with chips and dip,” he said. “Our participants consumed the same amount of chips regardless of whether dip was present, leading to much greater energy intake when dip was available.”
The study, which was led by research assistant Madeline
Harper, who recently graduated from Penn State with a master’s degree in food
science, assessed 46 adult participants. In two visits to the Sensory
Evaluation Center, they were served 70 grams of ranch-flavored chips, or about
2.5 servings, with or without about a third of a cup of ranch dip. Participants
ate as much as they wanted.
Their intake was measured, and all eating sessions were
video recorded and annotated for a number of bites and active eating time.
Researchers used that information to calculate measures of “eating
microstructure,” including eating rate and bite size.
Impact of Dip on Snack Consumption
Harper suggested that the greater intake of the chips and
dip snack was facilitated by a larger bite size resulting from dip inclusion.
On average per eating session, participants consumed 345 calories of chips and
dip compared to 195 calories of chips alone.
The study was novel, Harper noted, because little research has been conducted on the effect of external sources of oral lubrication like dips on oral processing of salty snacks.
“Clearly, it has an influence on food intake, especially
while snacking,” she said. “However, in this chips-and-dip snack, the greater
intake resulting from dip inclusion may have been facilitated by a larger total
snack bite-size, as opposed to faster chip eating rate.”
Even though snacking is a major source of energy in the
typical American diet, it remains understudied, Hayes said, adding that
understanding eating behavior around snacking is crucial to address issues of
overeating and obesity.
“This research opens up new avenues for exploring how the
physical properties of foods can influence our eating behaviors and ultimately,
our energy intake,” he said. “If we can slow people down, we can influence
energy consumption without giving up the pleasure from food.”
Reference: “Serving a dip with a salty snack promotes energy
intake” by Madeline M. Harper, Paige M. Cunningham and John E. Hayes, 26 June
2024, Food Quality and Preference.
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2024.105257
Paige Cunningham, postdoctoral scholar in the Department of
Food Science and the Department of Nutritional Sciences at Penn State,
contributed to the research.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of
Food and Agriculture supported this research.
