RESULTS Our findings suggest that consumers have a relatively poor underst and ing of a healthy diet .
The literature also demonstrates that there is poor evidence on the health protective effects of single foods or nutrients .
We further show that low SES is the single consistent risk factor for not adhering to a healthy diet .
Our review of the literature on determinants demonstrates that intentions , habits , self-regulatory skills , and the social and physical environment are the most important determinants of a healthy diet , which are in turn amenable to change by intervention strategies with varying levels of effectiveness .
Educational interventions generally show a limited effect on practising a healthy diet whereas interventions targeting habitual behaviour and /or the physical environment seem more promising .
In view of the large number of people who are concerned about their diets and make attempts to change their dietary patterns , we conclude that it is crucial to gain a better underst and ing of both the automatic and environmental influences that are responsible for people not acting upon their good intentions for diet change
OBJECTIVE To discuss healthy diet from a psychological perspective by considering definitions of healthy diet in terms of consumer underst and ing ; the health effects of specific dietary elements in terms of overweight and ( chronic ) illness ; the prevalence of healthy diet ; the psychological and environmental determinants of healthy diet ; and the psychological interventions that have been design ed to promote healthy diet .
Reward circuitry responsivity to food predicts future increases in body mass: Moderating effects of DRD2 and DRD4
OBJECTIVE To determine whether responsivity of reward circuitry to food predicts future increases in body mass and whether polymorphisms in DRD2 and DRD4 moderate these relations . DESIGN The functional magnetic resonance imaging ( fMRI ) paradigm investigated blood oxygen level dependent activation in response to imagined intake of palatable foods , unpalatable foods , and glasses of water shown in pictures . DNA was extracted from saliva sample s using st and ard salting-out and solvent precipitation methods . PARTICIPANTS Forty-four adolescent female high school students ranging from lean to obese . MAIN OUTCOME Future increases in body mass index ( BMI ) . RESULTS Weaker activation of the frontal operculum , lateral orbitofrontal cortex , and striatum in response to imagined intake of palatable foods , versus imagined intake of unpalatable foods or water , predicted future increases in body mass for those with the DRD2 TaqIA A1 allele or the DRD4 - 7R allele . Data also suggest that for those lacking these alleles , greater responsivity of these food reward regions predicted future increases in body mass . DISCUSSION This novel prospect i ve fMRI study indicates that responsivity of reward circuitry to food increases risk for future weight gain , but that genes that impact dopamine signaling capacity moderate the predictive effects , suggesting two qualitatively distinct pathways to unhealthy weight gain based on genetic risk
RESULTS Our findings suggest that consumers have a relatively poor underst and ing of a healthy diet .
The literature also demonstrates that there is poor evidence on the health protective effects of single foods or nutrients .
We further show that low SES is the single consistent risk factor for not adhering to a healthy diet .
Our review of the literature on determinants demonstrates that intentions , habits , self-regulatory skills , and the social and physical environment are the most important determinants of a healthy diet , which are in turn amenable to change by intervention strategies with varying levels of effectiveness .
Educational interventions generally show a limited effect on practising a healthy diet whereas interventions targeting habitual behaviour and /or the physical environment seem more promising .
In view of the large number of people who are concerned about their diets and make attempts to change their dietary patterns , we conclude that it is crucial to gain a better underst and ing of both the automatic and environmental influences that are responsible for people not acting upon their good intentions for diet change
OBJECTIVE To discuss healthy diet from a psychological perspective by considering definitions of healthy diet in terms of consumer underst and ing ; the health effects of specific dietary elements in terms of overweight and ( chronic ) illness ; the prevalence of healthy diet ; the psychological and environmental determinants of healthy diet ; and the psychological interventions that have been design ed to promote healthy diet .