Cheese puffs and cheetos

Okay, so we all occasionally eat whatever we want. Well, there are still tricks that we can use to ingest fewer calories. Here is one that I discovered recently.

If you snack on Cheetos Puffs instead of Cheetos Crunchy, you will take in fewer calories. Basically it comes down to the puffs being filled with air, giving the illusion of volume.

Now for the science. In 2007 Osterholt et. al compared two versions of an extruded snack (less-aerated: Cheetos Crunchy vs. more-aerated: Cheetos Puffs) made from the same ingredients but differed in the amount of incorporated air (they were equal in energy density, but differed in energy per volume). The study found that during a 12-minute period subjects consumed about 70 fewer kcal of the more-aerated snack than the less-aerated snack, equivalent to a 21% decrease in energy intake. When assessed by volume, however, consumption of the more-aerated snack was 73% greater than the less-aerated snack . Subjects consumed an estimated 68 pieces of the less-aerated snack and 24 pieces of the more-aerated snack during a 12-minute period.

The authors summarized:

"The decrease in food and energy intake was significant even though subjects responded to the manipulation by eating a significantly greater volume of the more-aerated snack (73%)… the amount of air incorporated into food can affect energy intake… When consuming a familiar food with an obvious difference in air content. . . individuals tend to eat a more consistent amount by weight. Thus, the current evidence indicates that the volume of food influences energy intake. . . . Associations between the amount of food consumed and changes in hunger, satiety, and palatability can be disrupted by the … aeration of food . . . ."

"In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that . . . differences in the aeration of a snack did influence energy intake without affecting the magnitude of changes in ratings of hunger and fullness. The results of this study suggest that increasing the air content may be an effective strategy to reduce energy intake from energy-dense snacks."

For those of you interested in reading the science behind this, here ya go: See, Incorporation of air into a snack food reduces energy intake. Osterholt KM, Roe LS, Rolls BJ. Appetite. 2007 May ; 48(3): 351–358. Free full text available at: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2129127/pdf/nihms22946.pdf

See also, Increasing the volume of a food by incorporating air affects satiety in men. Rolls BJ, Bell EA, Waugh BA. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2000;72:361–368. [PubMed: 10919928] Free full text available at: ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/72/2/361

They already inject air into beer, and it still doesn't help, LOL.

This thread cracks me up because I was just making fun of teenagers this weekend that were eating cheese puffs as opposed to crunchy cheetos.  Another fun fact, I asked that the kids bring chips and a 2 liter drink.  Every single kid showed up with some variety of Cheetos and a diet drink. 

"Put your big girl panties on and deal with it."

I *KNEW* those bags of Cheez Doodles I consumed in college at 2 am were healthy. WAY better than those crunch ones.  I KNEW it. 

I <3 Cheetos.  All kinds.  And beer. 

"If you're going to have a big butt, have a GREAT big butt!" - Gin Miller

mmmmm, Cheeze-its.

"If you're going to have a big butt, have a GREAT big butt!" - Gin Miller

I don't like any cheesy balls, chips or puffs.  Pour on son chips and salsa for me please.

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A challenger appears!

This is a great thread!   Love it1