Linking Junk Food to Workouts Can Help Cut Calories

Most of us don't think about our food in the number of push-ups, crunches or miles we'd have to run in order to burn it off, but it might be a nice tool to help keep us away from desert.

Researchers found that when diners were shown the amount of exercise needed to burn off an item of food on a menu, they chose a less calorific option. 

However if they were simply provided with nutritional data, they failed to opt for healthier selections. Even worse, their calorie intake was similar to those who were supplied with no information at all.

In the study, 300 participants aged between 18 and 30 were randomly assigned a menu.

One had no extra details, one had the food's calorie content and one told them how many minutes of brisk walking it would take to burn off the calories.

The researchers found the menu with the exercise information made people order 15 per cent fewer calories compared to the menu without any labels.

There was no significant difference between the menu with calorie information and the menu without any nutritional data.

"Brisk walking is something nearly everyone can relate to, which is why we displayed on the menu the minutes of brisk walking needed to burn food calories," said lead  researcher Ashlei James, from the Texas Christian University, according to The Daily Mail. "All menus contained the same food and beverage options, which included burgers, chicken sandwiches, salad, fries, desserts, soda, and water."

Senior researcher Dr Meena Shah agrees.

"We need a more effective strategy to encourage people to order and consume fewer calories from restaurant menus.

"This study suggests there are benefits to displaying exercise minutes to a group of young men and women. 

"This is the first study to look at the effects of displaying minutes of brisk walking needed to burn food calories on the calories ordered and consumed. 

"For example a female would have to walk briskly for approximately two hours to burn the calories in a quarter-pound double cheeseburger. But we can't generalize to a population over age 30, so we will further investigate this in an older and more diverse group."