The effect of social setting on response to a preloading manipulation in non-obese women and men

To determine the effect of a social setting on the physiological controls of eating, four pairs of subjects consumed a 15% and a 1% glucose (sweetened with aspartame to match the 15%) preload drink, preceding a test lunch meal, individually in a laboratory, and as a pair in a cafeteria. Compared with the 1% glucose preload, the 15% glucose preload significantly reduced food intake by the same amount in both settings (mean meal intakes: 467.4 g vs. 610.2 g, respectively). Intakes were 141.3 g +/- 41.8 SED less after the 15% than the 1% preload in the laboratory setting (t28df = 3.38, p = 0.0022), and 144.2 g +/- 41.8 SED in the cafeteria setting (t28df = 3.45, p = 0.0018). This result suggests that different social settings do not significantly alter physiological satiety cues and demonstrates that at least one of the physiological controls of eating, that has been tested in a laboratory setting, is reproducible in a cafeteria setting.