The effect of mindful eating on subsequent intake of a high calorie snack

This study examined the effects of applying a mindful eating strategy during lunch on subsequent intake of a palatable snack. It also looked at whether this effect occurred due to improved memory for lunch and whether effects varied with participant gender, level of interoceptive awareness or sensitivity to reward. Participants (n = 51) completed a heartbeat perception task to assess interoceptive awareness. They were then provided with a lunch of 825 calories. Participants in the experimental group ate lunch while listening to an audio clip encouraging them to focus on the sensory properties of the food (e.g. its smell, look, texture). Those in the control group ate lunch in silence. Two hours later participants were offered a snack. They then completed a questionnaire assessing sensitivity to reward as well as other measures assessing various aspects of their memory for lunch. The results showed no significant difference in lunch intake between the two groups but participants in the experimental group consumed significantly less snack than those in the control group; mean = 112.30 calories (SD = 70.24) versus mean = 203.20 calories (SD = 88.05) respectively, Cohen's d = 1.14. This effect occurred regardless of participant gender or level of interoceptive awareness. There was also no significant moderation by sensitivity to reward although one aspect, reward interest, showed a trend towards significance. There was no evidence to indicate that the mindful eating strategy enhanced participants' memory for their lunch. Further research is needed to assess the long-term effects of this strategy, as well as establish the underlying mechanisms. Future work on the relationship between sensitivity to reward and the effects of mindful eating may also benefit from larger sample sizes

Children respond to food restriction by increasing food consumption

Consistent with the insurance hypothesis, research shows that when children experience restricted access to food, they display increased intake when restrictions are lifted. This effect appears more robust for girls compared to boys, and for children with lower levels of inhibitory control. The insurance hypothesis has potentially important implications for parental feeding practices

Mindfulness and craving: effects and mechanisms

Mindfulness meditation has a long tradition of being used to manage cravings. This paper reviews 30 experimental studies that have examined the effects of different types of mindfulness practice on cravings for food, cigarettes and alcohol. The findings are interpreted in light of relevant theories of craving. The studies show most support for the elaborated intrusion theory of desire and conditioning models. They suggest that whilst mindfulness strategies may bring about immediate reductions in craving, such effects are likely to stem from working memory load, and will not necessarily be superior to alternative strategies that also load working memory. Likewise, reductions in craving over the medium term may occur due to extinction processes that result from the individual inhibiting craving-related responses. Again, alternative strategies that promote response suppression may be equally effective. Nevertheless, a smaller number of studies show promising results where mindfulness exercises have been repeatedly practiced over a longer period of time. The results of these studies provide tentative support for Buddhist models of craving that suggest mindfulness practice may confer unique benefits in terms of both craving reduction and reducing the extent to which craving leads to consumption. Further research would be needed to confirm this

The effect of a mindfulness-based decentering strategy on chocolate craving

According to the elaborated-intrusion theory of desire, strategies that load visual working memory will reduce cravings. According to the grounded cognition theory of desire, cravings will be reduced with mindfulness-based decentering strategies that encourage individuals to see their thoughts as thoughts. However, decentering strategies also tend to load visual working memory making it difficult to test the latter prediction. This study addressed this issue by matching visualization across decentering and guided imagery tasks. Male and female participants (n = 101) underwent a chocolate craving induction before listening to a 4-min audio recording that guided them to (a) decenter from their thoughts and feelings, (b) engage in visualization, or (c) let their mind wander. Participants reported on chocolate craving before and after the craving induction and following the 4-min recording. They also provided retrospective reports of craving during the recording, reported on the extent to which they had adhered to the audio instructions and briefly indicated what they had been thinking about during the recording. Results showed a significant reduction in cravings to baseline following the recording across all three conditions (p < .001), but no significant differences between conditions or in the retrospective reports of craving. There was some evidence to suggest that participants in the mind wandering condition had been thinking about alternate goals, which may have inhibited thoughts about chocolate and been just as effective at reducing craving as the imagery and decentering strategies. Exploratory analyses showed a trend toward decentering being more effective than imagery where participants reported higher task adherence throughout the 4 min (p = .067). This raises the possibility that decentering effects may be improved with better strategy adherence, which might be achieved through practice or increased motivation

Free healthy breakfasts in primary schools: A cluster randomised controlled trial of a policy intervention in Wales, UK

Objective: The present study evaluated the impact of a national school programme of universal free healthy breakfast provision in Wales, UK. Design: A cluster randomised controlled trial with repeated cross-sectional design and a 12-month follow-up. Primary outcomes were breakfast skipping, breakfast diet and episodic memory. Secondary outcomes were frequency of eating breakfast at home and at school, breakfast attitudes, rest-of-day diet and class behaviour. Setting: Primary schools in nine local education authority areas. Subjects: A total of 4350 students (aged 9–11 years) at baseline and 4472 at follow-up in 111 schools. Results: Students in intervention schools reported significantly higher numbers of healthy food items consumed at breakfast and more positive attitudes towards breakfast eating at 12 months. Parents in intervention schools reported significantly higher rates of consumption of breakfast at school and correspondingly lower rates of breakfast consumption at home. No other significant differences were found. Conclusions: The intervention did not reduce breakfast skipping; rather, pupils substituted breakfast at home for breakfast at school. However, there were improvements in children’s nutritional intake at breakfast time, if not the rest of the day, and more positive attitudes to breakfast, which may have implications for life-course dietary behaviours. There was no impact on episodic memory or classroom behaviour, which may require targeting breakfast skippers

Increased affective influence: situational complexity or deliberation time?

The affect infusion model (AIM) is a prominent theory of when current emotional state is expected to influence the interpretation of a social stimulus (situation). We discuss the assumptions in AIM and conclude that its current specification predicts that both deliberation time and situational complexity should lead to affect infusion. The aim of this research was to clarify the relative importance of these factors in determining affect infusion and hence promote the development of AIM. We present an experimental design in which situational complexity and deliberation time can be manipulated orthogonally as independent factors. Our results show that the latter factor, but not the former, can influence the degree of affect infusion

Can mindfulness influence weight management related eating behaviors? If so, how?

Mindfulness is increasingly being used for weight management. However, the strength of the evidence for such an approach is unclear; although mindfulness-based weight management programs have had some success, it is difficult to conclude that the mindfulness components were responsible. Research in this area is further complicated by the fact that the term ‘mindfulness’ is used to refer to a range of different practices. Additionally, we have little understanding of the mechanisms by which mindfulness might exert its effects. This review addresses these issues by examining research that has looked at the independent effects of mindfulness and mindfulness-related strategies on weight loss and weight management related eating behaviors. As well as looking at evidence for effects, the review also considers whether effects may vary with different types of strategy, and the kinds of mechanisms that may be responsible for any change. It is concluded that there is some evidence to support the effects of (a) present moment awareness, when applied to the sensory properties of food, and (b) decentering. However, research in these areas has yet to be examined in a controlled manner in relation to weight management

Developing voice: Writing with at-risk adolescents

The purpose of this project was to examine current research on the writing process, to identify major aspects of an effective writing program, and then to design and implement a writing program for at-risk adolescents which encompasses these major aspects. It was found that the development of writing abilities involves the combination of personal style, cognitive development, involvement in the process, and writing instruction. A description of effective classroom instruction, which involves encouraging rather than pushing or pressuring students, is given. Voice, an important element in writing is explored and woven into the program. The writing aspects of topic selection, shared writing, guided writing, writing conferences, independent writing and sharing were implemented with the writing of poetry, fiction, and non-fiction

Estimating everyday portion size using a 'method of constant stimuli': in a student sample, portion size is predicted by gender, dietary behaviour, and hunger, but not BMI

This paper (i) explores the proposition that body weight is associated with large portion sizes and (ii) introduces a new technique for measuring everyday portion size. In our paradigm, the participant is shown a picture of a food portion and is asked to indicate whether it is larger or smaller than their usual portion. After responding to a range of different portions an estimate of everyday portion size is calculated using probit analysis. Importantly, this estimate is likely to be robust because it is based on many responses. First-year undergraduate students (N=151) completed our procedure for 12 commonly consumed foods. As expected, portion sizes were predicted by gender and by a measure of dieting and dietary restraint. Furthermore, consistent with reports of hungry supermarket shoppers, portion-size estimates tended to be higher in hungry individuals. However, we found no evidence for a relationship between BMI and portion size in any of the test foods. We consider reasons why this finding should be anticipated. In particular, we suggest that the difference in total energy expenditure of individuals with a higher and lower BMI is too small to be detected as a concomitant difference in portion size (at least in our sample)

Sensitivity to reward and punishment: Associations with diet, alcohol consumption, and smoking

This study examined whether sensitivity to reward predicts a range of potentially health-damaging behaviours. Secondary objectives were to explore the relationship between these behaviours and sensitivity to punishment. Sensitivity to reward and punishment were assessed among 184 individuals using questionnaire measures of Behavioural Approach System (BAS) and Behavioural Inhibition System (BIS) sensitivity. Participants also completed a food frequency questionnaire and measures of alcohol consumption and smoking. Higher BAS sensitivity predicted higher fat intake, higher alcohol consumption, greater likelihood of binge drinking, greater likelihood of being a smoker and, amongst smokers, smoking frequency. Higher BIS sensitivity predicted lower alcohol consumption but higher sugar intake. Thus, sensitivity to reward appears to be a risk factor for lifestyle behaviours that contribute to poor health. Whilst BIS sensitivity seems to offer some protection with respect to alcohol intake, the results suggest that this does not extend to health-related behaviours, in which the negative consequences may be less immediate. Instead, BIS sensitivity predicted higher sugar intake. This is consistent with the view that BIS sensitivity leads to higher anxiety, which individuals may attempt to regulate by indulging in sugary foods