Authors
Yeomans MR. Gray RW. Mitchell CJ. True S.
Institution
Laboratory of Experimental Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1
9QG, U.K.
Title
Independent effects of palatability and within-meal pauses on intake and
appetite ratings in human volunteers.
Source
Appetite. 29(1):61-76, 1997 Aug.
Abstract
The effects of the introduction of timed pauses within meals and palatability
on food intake and changes in rated appetite during a meal were assessed in
three experiments in which volunteers ate a lunch of pasta with a tomato
sauce. Eating was monitored using a disguised electronic balance attached to
a micro-computer, which also allowed the introduction of timed pauses within
meals. In the first experiment, 16 subjects were tested with both a bland and
palatable food (with 0.27% oregano), with eating uninterrupted or with pauses
after every 50 g consumed during which appetite ratings were completed. Both
the addition of oregano and the introduction of regular within-meal pauses
enhanced overall intake. Rated hunger increased in the early stages of eating
the palatable food in the interrupted condition, and then declined, whereas
hunger declined throughout with the bland food. Similarly, the linear
function relating intake to time in the uninterrupted condition was greater
with the palatable food. In the second experiment, nine subjects ate the
palatable food with no pauses within meals, with 30-second pauses with
appetite ratings or with 30-second pauses in a non-appetite task. Intake was
greater in both pause conditions than when eating was uninterrupted. In
Experiment 3, the effect of pause duration was investigated in a further 16
subjects, with either no pause or a pause of 5, 30 or 60 seconds. Subjects
ate more in all pause conditions than with no pauses, while ratings of hunger
and fullness suggested that subjects were less satisfied at the end of the
meal with longer pauses. These data confirm previous work which suggests that
palatability exerts its effect by stimulating appetite and eating rate, but
also suggest that the introduction of pauses within meals enhances intake as
well, contradicting the idea that pausing within meals should reduce intake
by allowing more time for post-ingestive satiety to develop.