Consumers view fruits, vegetables as most hunger-satisfying, expensive

Consumers tend to associate more nutritious foods, such as fruits and vegetables, with hunger satisfaction, whereas finding less healthy options such as sweets and potato chips unsatisfying, according to research presented at the European Obesity Conference in Prague.

In an online survey of consumers, those who ranked healthy foods as satiety-inducing also found those foods to be lower in fat and energy density, higher in fiber and more expensive.

“The approach we have developed has the potential to be applied to clinical and nonclinical populations to compare whether perceptions about foods differ between these groups,” Nicola Buckland, PhD, a research fellow of the school of psychology at the University of Leeds, U.K., told Endocrine Today. “Currently, we do not have findings from a clinical population, but the approach has the potential to investigate this.”

Nicola Buckland

Buckland and colleagues analyzed data from 887 consumers who completed online surveys, rating 75 individual foods based on their subjective attributes, such as the potential to satisfy hunger, perceived taste and energy content.

Researchers also analyzed those same foods for nutritional composition and calorie content, using manufacturer packaging and nutrition databases.

Survey participants associated foods perceived to satisfy hunger the most with perceived healthiness and greater control over eating and reported consuming them more frequently.

Survey participants found that, per unit of energy, vegetables and fruits satisfied hunger the most, whereas sweets, cookies, potato chips and other carbohydrates satisfied hunger the least, according to researchers.

Survey participants associated hunger-satisfying foods with higher cost (P = .01), a lower percentage of fat (P = .04) and low energy density (P < .001).

“Consumer perceptions of common foods alongside their objective nutritional attributes are important determinants of the perceived satiety value of foods,” the researchers wrote. “Foods rated as most satiating by consumers were low in energy density, low in [percentage of] fat, [and] high in fiber and tended to be more expensive per calorie. These findings have implications for the development and marketing of satiety-enhancing foods.”

Buckland said she is currently seeking funding to explore more foods, as well as perceptions about how satisfying for hunger various foods are across specific groups.

“For example, we are keen to explore perceptions about the hunger satisfaction of foods for people who successfully manage their weight compared to those who are less successful,” Buckland said. – by Regina Schaffer

Reference:

Buckland NJ, et al. Poster T3:PO.094. Presented at: European Congress on Obesity; May 6-9, 2015; Prague.

Disclosure: Buckland reports no relevant financial disclosures.