How Food Texture Influences Your Calorie Intake

Do you prefer your cookies crispy and crunchy or soft and gooey? Your answer could affect how many calories you assume you're consuming. According to a new study, people perceive foods that are hard or rough to have fewer calories—meaning they might consume more of those foods regardless of their actual nutritional value.

The study, which is scheduled to be published in a forthcoming issue of the Journal of Consumer Research, consisted of five experiments on food texture. In one of the experiments, researchers had participants taste chocolate brownie bites that were either hard or soft, then asked them to estimate the caloric value. Participants overestimated the calorie counts of both kinds of brownies—but they thought the softer brownies had 55 percent more calories, on average.

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In a subsequent experiment, researchers counted the number of times study participants chewed on those hard and soft chocolate bites and then, again, asked for estimates of the calorie content. When people chewed more (which happened when they were eating the softer brownie), they guessed that the food had a higher calorie count. But as in the previous experiment, the brownies actually contained the same exact number of calories.

Finally, researchers asked participants to eat fudge with either rough or smooth edges—and then choose a fruit salad or piece of chocolate cake. Participants perceived the smooth fudge to have more calories than the rough-edged fudge (not true!), but on a positive note, people who sampled the smooth fudge were more likely to opt for the fruit salad afterward. 

The lesson here? We're not so awesome at estimating calorie counts—so if you're trying to lose weight, it's best to check the nutrition facts. 

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