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Ajit Patel Goldshield - Does Food Advertising Make You Eat More?



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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