Supersizing Salads Cuts Calories From Main Course

Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (October 13, 2003) - New research presented today at the North American Association for the Study of Obesity's (NAASO) Annual Scientific Meeting in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, reported that eating a large low-calorie salad as a first course may help lower the amount of calories you eat in the entire meal.

The results of this study were surprising because adding an extra course to a meal usually increases the total number of calories consumed. However, when that course is a large low-calorie salad, it actually lowers the total calories consumed. In contrast, adding a high-calorie salad as a first course means that people eat more than if they ate no salad at all.

Researchers found that when individuals ate 3 cups of low-calorie salad before lunch, they ate less at the entire meal (12 percent fewer calories) than when they did not eat a first-course salad. When they ate a 1.5-cup portion of the low-calorie salad, they ate 7 percent fewer calories overall than when they had no salad. There were 100 calories in the large low-calorie salad and 50 calories in the small low-calorie salad.

The low-calorie salads were made up of iceberg and romaine lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, celery and cucumbers, along with fat-free dressing and light mozzarella cheese. Subjects were required to consume the entire salad before eating a pasta meal.

In contrast, when people ate a small, high-calorie salad (200 calories), they ate more at lunch (8 percent more calories overall) than when they ate no salad at all. The extra calories came from higher levels of fat in the salad dressing and cheese. When individuals ate a large, high-calorie salad (400 calories), they ate 17 percent more calories overall than when they ate no salad before lunch.

"The findings were surprising, because usually, adding variety to a meal by adding an extra course tends to make people eat more," said lead researcher Barbara Rolls, PhD, a nutrition researcher at Pennsylvania State University. "Rarely have we found that adding an extra course translates into less intake at the meal. The key here is that it's all in the high-calorie additions such as dressing and cheese. Big portions make you feel as if you've eaten a lot, regardless of the calorie content. But if you fill up with high-calorie foods, you end up eating more."

The study could help people who are trying to lose weight better plan their meals by adding low-calorie, first-course salads to meals on a regular basis.

The study was presented as part of a joint effort by NAASO and the American Diabetes Association (ADA) to increase awareness of the rising problem of obesity and its related health problems in the United States.

According to data from the 1999-2000 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, published October 8, 2002 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), obesity continued to increase dramatically during the late 1990's for Americans of all ages, with nearly one-third of all adults-almost 59 million people-now classified as obese. This data confirms nearly a two-fold increase in the number of obese Americans in the last two decades, and emphasizes the need for more aggressive approaches to obesity treatment and prevention. Obesity can significantly increase a person's risk for a number of serious conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure and some types of cancer.

Recent research has provided greater understanding of obesity as a chronic disorder caused by a complex interaction of genetic, metabolic, behavioral, psychological and environmental (social and cultural) factors. Despite these advances in research, however, children, adolescents and adults in the U.S. continue to become overweight and obese in record numbers.

The North American Society for the Study of Obesity (NAASO) is a leading scientific society dedicated to the study of obesity. NAASO is committed to encouraging research on the causes, treatment and prevention of obesity as well as to keeping the scientific community and public informed of new advances in the field. For more information about NAASO and obesity, visit www.naaso.org or call (301) 563-6526.

The American Diabetes Association is the nation's leading voluntary health organization supporting diabetes research, information, and advocacy. Founded in 1940, the Association has offices in every region of the country, providing services to hundreds of communities. For more information about the Association and diabetes, please visit www.diabetes.org or call 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383).