The effect of a pre-load experiment on subsequent food consumption. Caloric and macronutrient intake in the days following a pre-load manipulation

The current study was designed to test potential caloric and macronutrient counter-regulation or compensation amongst 76 participants who participated in a milkshake preload experiment. Participants completed food diaries for 2 days before and 2 days after participating in the pre-load experiment. It was hypothesized that dieters and restrained eaters might respond to the pre-load by compensating or counter-regulating food consumption during the rest of the day following the experiment, and on the 2 days post-experiment. Results indicated that there were no significant differences in caloric or macronutrient consumption between the experimental and control groups on the days after the experiment. There were also no interactions between restraint and dieting status and the experimental condition. However, there was a main effect of caloric intake across dieting status, with those dieting to lose weight showing lower caloric intake than those not dieting and those dieting to maintain weight. The results of this study suggests that disinhibitory food stimuli may be less powerful than once thought or relatively short acting, as long-term counter-regulation or compensation did not occur for most people. Overall, the current study provides additional insight into potential long term caloric counter-regulation or compensation in participants who participated in a preload experiment, but additional research is needed to better understand this phenomenon.