A new study from Drexel University researchers suggests that eating the same snacks and meals may be a better path to weight loss and management than following the conventional nutritional advice of eating a wide variety of foods. The team examined the effect of “routinized” eating among participants enrolled in a behavioral weight-loss program over 12 weeks. Those who stuck to similar foods saw promising results, with increased dietary repetition associated with better weight loss and caloric stability, or eating roughly the same amount of calories each day of the week.
The analysis used food diaries from 112 people who logged daily calories and foods via the Fitbit app and weighed themselves on wireless scales at home. Those whose food entries were majority repeats saw an average weight loss of 5.9%, while those whose entries were mostly unique foods had an average weight loss of 4.3%. The study focused on foods appearing more than 10 times in a person’s food log: for every 10% increase in the proportion of these high-frequency foods, participant weight loss increased by 1.6%. The Drexel researchers theorized that habitual, repetitive eating sets dieters up for success by making calorie restriction “less effortful,” reducing self-control burden during weight loss attempts.
Practical Strategies and Limitations
On a practical level, repeating meals and snacks can make meal planning and food tracking—some of the most effective strategies for weight loss—more manageable. However, the research relied on a relatively small sample size and had other limitations. Public health experts presume self-reported diet data to be biased since people generally underestimate the calories of their meals. The study also did not assess nutritional value of the repeated foods, simply tallying any item logged multiple times. Existing evidence supports the study’s findings: a previous study found that people ate more when presented with multiple sandwich options instead of a single filling, and other research concluded that repeatedly consuming a highly desired food decreases its desirability and appeal, making overeating less likely.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.phillyvoice.com/eating-same-food-repetitive-diet-weight-loss/