A MEDIUM-TERM INTERVENTION STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF HIGH-FAT AND LOW-FAT SNACKS VARYING IN SWEETNESS AND FAT-CONTENT - LARGE SHIFTS IN DAILY FAT INTAKE BUT GOOD COMPENSATION FOR DAILY ENERGY-INTAKE

Thirty-six normal-weight, habitual snackers (eighteen males, eighteen females) completed a medium-term intervention study designed to examin e the tendency of four different types of snacks, varying in nutrient (low- (LF) or high-fat (HF)) and sensory properties (sweet (SW) or non -sweet (NSW)), to influence the control of appetite and to adjust dail y energy intake. Subjects were exposed to each snack category for a 3- week period and were asked to consume a minimum number of snacks each day so that at least 25 % of their daily energy intake would be derive d from the test snacks. Energy and macronutrient intakes from the test snacks were calculated every day and also from other eating episodes (using 3d food diary records) during the third week of snack exposure. Subjects consumed more energy/d from the SW snacks than from the NSW snacks, with most energy being consumed from the HF/SW snacks (3213kJ) and least energy from the LF/NSW snacks (1628kJ). This differential s nack intake remained stable across the whole snack exposure period. To tal daily energy intake did not differ significantly during exposure t o any of the four snack types. Furthermore, the encouragement to eat f reely from the test snacks did not lead to daily overconsumption of en ergy when compared with pre-study intakes. Hence, the level of snack c onsumption was largely compensated for by the energy consumed from the rest of the eating pattern. Although daily energy intake during expos ure to the HF snacks was an average of 364kJ higher (NS) than that dur ing exposure to the LF snacks, the dearest and most significant effect of snack consumption was on daily macronutrient intake. Appreciable c onsumption of the HF snacks raised the percentage of total daily energ y intake consumed as fat from 37 to 41 % (P < 0.01). In contrast, the LF snacks reduced daily fat intake to 33.5 % (LF/SW, P < 0.05; LF/NSW, NS) of total daily energy. The results, therefore, suggest that, in h abitual snackers, generous consumption of LF snacks, when compared wit h HF snacks, is an effective strategy to reduce fat intake so that it approaches the recommendations of dietary guidelines without increasin g total daily energy intake.