Junk food ads trigger positive emotions, healthy foods not so much

Study: A randomized experiment of the effects of food advertisements on food-related emotional expectancies in adults. You might not care about the fast-food commercial shots of juicy burgers or creamy milkshakes, but they might change your beliefs about these items, whereas shots of fresh salads and berries might not, according to a new study. University of Michigan researchers found that in adults who did not already hold strong beliefs about how foods affect their emotions, fast-food TV ads for cheeseburgers, chicken nuggets and milkshakes increased their beliefs that they would feel positive emotions while eating those types of food. However, there was no evidence that ads for salads and yogurt parfaits changed beliefs about feeling positive emotions while eating fruits and vegetables. This research is one of the first studies to test the effects of food advertisements on food-related emotional expectations. The study, which involved 718 participants, tested how food ads affect food-related emotional expectations in adults and whether effects differed by individual levels of "food addiction” symptoms. Food addiction is marked by strong cravings for highly processed foods, diminished control over their intake, overconsumption despite negative consequences including clinically significant distress and diet-related disease, and stronger food-related emotional expectations, previous research has shown.