Craving Change encourages clients to be aware of how variety can affect their food choices and eating behaviour. Studies have shown that having an increased variety of nutrient-dense foods, such as vegetables, at mealtime on a regular basis promotes increased consumption. A recent study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics entitled, Variety Predicts Discretionary Food and Beverage Intake, examined whether variety also influences the intake of foods high in added sugar, saturated fat, sodium and/or alcohol. Eleven categories of these discretionary items were included in the study. Over 200,000 Australian adults completed a survey that included frequency and portion-based questions to estimate their usual daily intake of servings of the items. The results indicated that a high variety of discretionary foods and beverages was associated with a greater number of servings.
The study authors concluded, “Alternative intervention approaches focused on promoting reductions in variety, rather than just portion size or frequency of intake, could be a novel way of addressing persistent overconsumption of discretionary foods and beverages.”
