Americans’ love affair with salty snacks is no secret—they account for about a quarter of the calories in the average person’s daily diet. But a new study has found a critical mistake many snackers make that could be causing them to consume an incredibly large number of calories during a single snacking session.
In the study to be published in the November issue of the journal; Food Quality and ChoiceResearchers at the Penn State Sensory Assessment Center sought to learn how Americans' eating behaviors changed when they were served dip along with a salty snack. And it turned out, when people paired the chips with dip, they consumed 77 percent more calories, even though they ended up eating the same number of chips.
To reach their findings, the research team assessed 46 adult participants over two visits. During these visits, subjects were served 70 grams, or the equivalent of about 2.5 servings, of ranch-flavored chips — with or without about a third cup of ranch-flavored sauce — and were allowed to eat as much as they wanted.
During the recorded sessions, participants’ total intake was measured, along with factors such as the number of bites and active eating time in minutes. The data was then used to calculate measures of “eating microstructure.” The researchers ultimately found that participants took larger bites, which was why they took larger bites.
Participants consumed an average of 195 calories from chips and dip alone, while the average calories consumed with chips and dip was 345 calories.
John Hayes, the study's corresponding author and director of the Penn State Sensory Evaluation Center, noted that although there was no difference in the chips consumed, there was a discrepancy in calorie intake.
“The most striking findings from our study were that people didn't eat fewer chips when the dip was present; they ate the same amount of chips and dip,” Hayes told Penn State Research. “This lack of compensation means that adding dip to chips could significantly increase overall energy intake without people realizing it.”
Hayes noted that most people assume that when a snack is paired with a sauce, individuals will compensate by eating less of the snack that is the carrier of the sauce. But this was not the case.
“However, our research shows that this is not the case for chips and dip,” he added. “Our participants consumed the same amount of chips whether or not the dip was present, leading to significantly greater energy intake when the dip was present.”
According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly one-third of adults in the United States are overweight and more than two-fifths are obese.
However, even though the study was conducted with a fattier cream-based sauce, an easy solution for chip and dip lovers to cut calories is to swap ranch dressing for a vegetable- or legume-based dip, like salsa or hummus. Also, it certainly doesn't hurt to pay attention to portion size.
