Objective: The current study explored the effect of availability of a forbidden food on subsequent eating behavior in restrained and unrestrained women.
Method: Thirty restrained and 30 unrestrained, normal-weight women were assigned randomly to one of two conditions, an experimental group that was exposed to a forbidden food (chocolate) for 24hr or a control group that was given no special intervention. At the end of the exposure period, all subjects completed an intake test of the forbidden food.
Results: Although subjects were instructed not to eat the food provided for the exposure period, women in the restrained group consumed a small quantity of the chocolate, whereas unrestrained women consumed none. Intake at test was greater in the temptation than in the control condition and restrained eaters consumed more than unrestrained eaters in both conditions.
Discussion: The results are discussed in terms of current theories of restrained eating and the possible interrelationships between eating regulation and cognition.
Copyright 2003 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 35: 59-68, 2004.