ACCOMMODATION OF PARTICULAR FOODS OR BEVERAGES INTO SPONTANEOUSLY INGESTED EVENING MEALS

Previous research has indicated that individual foods or beverages are ingested independently and do not produce adjustments to the intake o f other constituents in the diet (de Castro, 1993; Wilson, 1991). In o rder to eliminate time of day as a potential contaminant, the present study investigated the accommodation of foods and beverages into the a mount ingested at large evening meals only. Adults (n=601) were paid t o maintain detailed diaries of the timings, quantities and preparation techniques of everything they ingested for seven consecutive days. Wi th the exceptions of soup, beef and chicken, 12 out of 15 types of dri nks or foods were found to add to the total calories ingested in eveni ng meals without displacing calories ingested in other forms, while in gestion of non-caloric diet sodas was not associated with differences in intake. The fat and protein, but not carbohydrate, contents of the items correlated with a measure of the satiating properties of the par ticular food or beverage, namely the correlation between the amount in gested of the particular type and the amounts of other nutrients inges ted in the meal. The results confirm that intake at a meal is quite el astic and can be significantly influenced by the presence or absence o f particular components of the meal and their constituents.