Objective: To investigate the differences between eating virtual and real-life meals and test the hypothesis that eating a virtual meal can reduce hunger among healthy women. Methods: Twenty healthy women will be recruited and partake in a randomized crossover study. The subjects will be asked to eat one introduction meal, two real meals, and two virtual meals, all containing real or virtual meatballs and potatoes. The real meals will be eaten on a plate placed on a scale which communicates with analytical software on a computer. The virtual meals will be eaten in a room, where participants are seated on a real chair in front of a real table, and fitted with the virtual-reality equipment. The eating behavior for both the real and virtual meals will be filmed. Hunger will be measured before and after the meals using questionnaires.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
24
Virtual food eaten using immersive virtual reality equipment
Real food eaten using regular utensils
Karolinska Institutet
Stockholm, Huddinge, Sweden
Difference in hunger before to after meal
Rated on visual analogue scale (range 0 - 100)
Time frame: Before to after meal (on average around 10 minutes)
Food intake
Grams of food ingested
Time frame: During meal (around 10 minutes)
Meal duration
Minute duration of the meal
Time frame: During meal (around 10 minutes)
Forkfuls
Number of times participant took food from the plate
Time frame: During meal (around 10 minutes)
Additions
Number of times the participant added food to the plate
Time frame: During meal (around 10 minutes)
Chews
Number of times the participant chewed the food
Time frame: During meal (around 10 minutes)
This platform is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional.