Diet and Environment
The CNP Diet and Environment Research Category consolidates research exploring the interconnected relationship between dietary intake and our environment. To view each original study on the open internet, click “Original.” To view the CNP-written abstract summary, click “CNP Summary.” While only some of the CNP-written abstract summaries are available below for free, all abstract summaries are available to CNP members through the CNP Library Membership.
FEATURED CNP RESEARCH SUMMARY
The state of connecting to nature, or nature relatedness (NR), was found to favorably impact physical and psychological health. However, there are no studies that explore potential links between NR and dietary patterns. This compelled Milliron et al. (2022) to investigate the association between NR and dietary patterns (including diet diversity, and fruit and vegetable consumption) in a sample of 317 adults above the age of 18. A 21-item NR scale was used to evaluate connection to nature, while the FAO’s standardized tool helped appraise how diverse participant dietary intake is. A two item Fruit and Vegetable Screener helped assess daily fruit and vegetable consumption (in cups/day), and responses to socio-demographic queries were documented. The study demonstrated that people with higher NR scores were more likely to recount consuming more diverse diets, including greater consumption of fruits and vegetables. This finding was consistent even after adjusting for socio-demographic indices (such as gender, race, and income). The authors believe these findings shed importance on the need for promoting interventions that strengthen NR, such as resources for nature prescription, metropolitan gardening, and engagement in urban green areas.
2024
Perspective: Beyond the Mediterranean Diet—exploring Latin American, Asian, and African heritage diets as cultural models of healthy eating
The Mediterranean diet is extensively studied as a healthy eating paradigm, yet research into other cultural dietary models has been limited. This perspective article by LeBlanc et al. (2024) explores traditional Latin American, Asian, and African heritage diets, highlighting their components, association with diet quality and health markers, and implications for nutrition policies and programs. While these diets feature diverse foods and flavors, they share a common emphasis on healthful plant-based foods, which correlates with high dietary quality and lower rates of major diseases and disabilities. The article suggests that incorporating these cultural dietary patterns into nutrition interventions holds promise but stresses the need for further research to ascertain health outcomes and optimal implementation strategies. [NPID: African diet, Latin American diet, Asian diet, traditional foods, nutrition transition]
2024
Experiencing nature leads to healthier food choices
Experiencing nature has been associated with numerous health and well-being benefits. This study by Langlois & Chandon (2024) investigates whether exposure to nature influences food choices that could enhance these benefits. Five separate experiments (with sample sizes of 39, 698, 885, 1191, and 913) demonstrate that individuals exposed to natural environments tend to select healthier foods than those in urban settings or under control conditions. This effect spans various types of foods and beverages across participants from three different countries and in diverse settings, such as walking in a park (versus a city street) or viewing photos of natural (versus urban or control) scenes. These findings offer valuable insights into how proximity to nature may influence dietary choices and subsequent health outcomes. [NPID: nature exposure, food choices, well-being, urban environments, experimental studies]
CNP Research Summary can be found in the CNP Library Membership
2021
The Relationship between Music and Food Intake: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Several environmental elements, including music, have been demonstrated to be associated with food consumption. Previous research on the connection between listening to music and eating habits has produced mixed results. In this study by Cui et al. (2021), a systematic review and meta-analysis were done to examine potential modifiers that may have contributed to the heterogeneity of the previous data and to quantitatively assess the degree to which music is connected with food consumption. Four databases - PsycINFO, Web of Science, PubMed, ProQuest Dissertations, several theses - and Google Scholar were used to search for relevant literature, qualifying nine studies from 1989 to 2020 for inclusion. Through the use of a three-level random-effects model, a marginally significant but modest effect size was revealed. It was discovered that Body Mass Index (BMI) substantially contributed to the variability of effect sizes, with higher BMI people experiencing more substantial beneficial effects of music on food intake. However, music-related variables did not significantly moderate the connection between music and food consumption. In order to update the existing meta-analysis and gain a deeper grasp of this subject, the authors highlight the need for more experimental research. [NPID: Music, food intake, meta analysis, body mass index, systematic review]
2019
Not just another pint! The role of emotion induced by music on the consumer's tasting experience
To measure the impact of the emotion brought on by listening to music on the consumer's multimodal tasting experience, Reinoso-Carvalho et al. (2019) introduced their unique approach, examining crossmodal effects when customers were exposed to two opposing musical recordings (evoking positive vs. negative emotion) while sipping beer. The findings imply that some facets of the multimodal tasting experience were impacted by the emotional responses elicited by the music. When listening to upbeat music, participants judged the beer as tasting sweeter and preferred it more. When the participants listened to music linked with negative emotion, the identical beer was regarded as being more bitter, having a greater alcohol level, and having more body. Furthermore, when beer was sampled while participants listened to uplifting music, they were prepared to spend 7-8% more for it. This unique process was repeated with two distinct types of beer. The authors discuss these findings in addition to practical ramifications of how music may significantly improve how a consumer reacts to a brand. [NPID: Beer, crossmodal correspondences, flavor, multisensory, music, sensory marketing]
2021
The relationship between music and food intake: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Several environmental elements, including music, have been demonstrated to be associated with food consumption. Previous research on the connection between listening to music and eating habits has produced mixed results. In the current study by Cui et al. (2021), a systematic review and meta-analysis were done to examine potential modifiers that may have contributed to the heterogeneity of the previous data and to quantitatively assess the degree to which music is connected with food consumption. Four databases - PsycINFO, Web of Science, PubMed, ProQuest Dissertations, several theses - and Google Scholar were used to search for relevant literature, qualifying nine studies from 1989 to 2020 for inclusion. Through the use of a three-level random-effects model, a marginally significant but modest effect size was revealed. It was discovered that Body Mass Index (BMI) substantially contributed to the variability of effect sizes, with higher BMI people experiencing more substantial beneficial effects of music on food intake. However, music-related variables did not significantly moderate the connection between music and food consumption. In order to update the existing meta-analysis and gain a deeper grasp of this subject, the authors highlight the need for more experimental research. [NPID: Music, food intake, body mass index, meta analysis, systematic review]
CNP Research Summary can be found in the CNP Library Membership
2022
Nature relatedness is positively associated with dietary diversity and fruit and vegetable Intake in an urban population
The state of connecting to nature, or nature relatedness (NR), was found to favorably impact physical and psychological health. However, there are no studies that explore potential links between NR and dietary patterns. This compelled Milliron et al. (2022) to investigate the association between NR and dietary patterns (including diet diversity, and fruit and vegetable consumption) in a sample of 317 adults above the age of 18. A 21-item NR scale was used to evaluate connection to nature, while the FAO’s standardized tool helped appraise how diverse participant dietary intake is. A two item Fruit and Vegetable Screener helped assess daily fruit and vegetable consumption (in cups/day), and responses to socio-demographic queries were documented. The study demonstrated that people with higher NR scores were more likely to recount consuming more diverse diets, including greater consumption of fruits and vegetables. This finding was consistent even after adjusting for socio-demographic indices (such as gender, race, and income). The authors believe these findings shed importance on the need for promoting interventions that strengthen NR, such as resources for nature prescription, metropolitan gardening, and engagement in urban green areas. [NPID: Nature, nature relatedness, nutrition, dietary diversity, urban population]