The Positive Relationships of Playfulness With Indicators of Health, Activity, and Physical Fitness.

Adult playfulness is a personality trait that enables people to frame or reframe everyday situations in such a way that they experience them as entertaining, intellectually stimulating, or personally interesting. Earlier research supports the notion that playfulness is associated with the pursuit of an active way of life. While playful children are typically described as being active, only limited knowledge exists on whether playfulness in adults is also associated with physical activity. Additionally, existing literature has not considered different facets of playfulness, but only global playfulness. Therefore, we employed a multifaceted model that allows distinguishing among Other-directed, Lighthearted, Intellectual, and Whimsical playfulness. For narrowing this gap in the literature, we conducted two studies addressing the associations of playfulness with health, activity, and fitness. The main aim of Study 1 was a comparison of self-ratings (N = 529) and ratings from knowledgeable others (N = 141). We tested the association of self- and peer-reported playfulness with self- and peer-reported physical activity, fitness, and health behaviors. There was a good convergence of playfulness among self- and peer-ratings (between r = 0.46 and 0.55, all p < 0.001). Data show that both self- and peer-ratings are differentially associated with physical activity, fitness, and health behaviors. For example, self-rated playfulness shared 3% of the variance with self-rated physical fitness and 14% with the pursuit of an active way of life. Study 2 provides data on the association between self-rated playfulness and objective measures of physical fitness (i.e., hand and forearm strength, lower body muscular strength and endurance, cardio-respiratory fitness, back and leg flexibility, and hand and finger dexterity) using a sample of N = 67 adults. Self-rated playfulness was associated with lower baseline and activity (climbing stairs) heart rate and faster recovery heart rate (correlation coefficients were between -0.19 and -0.24 for global playfulness). Overall, Study 2 supported the findings of Study 1 by showing positive associations of playfulness with objective indicators of physical fitness (primarily cardio-respiratory fitness). The findings represent a starting point for future studies on the relationships between playfulness, and health, activity, and physical fitness.

Positive affect and physical activity: Testing effects on goal setting, activation, prioritisation, and attainment.

OBJECTIVE: The present research tested whether incidental positive affect promotes pursuit of physical activity goals. Four key features of goal pursuit were examined - setting physical activity goals (Study 1), goal activation (Study 2), and goal prioritization and goal attainment (Study 3). DESIGN: Participants (Ns = 80, 81, and 59, in Studies 1-3, respectively) were randomized to positive affect (joy, hope) or neutral affect (control) conditions in each study. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Questionnaire measures of goal level, goal commitment, and means selection (Study 1); a lexical decision task indexed goal activation (Study 2), a choice task captured goal prioritization and MET minutes quantified goal attainment (Study 3). RESULTS: Study 1 showed that positive affect led to a greater number of intended physical activities, and that joy engendered greater willingness to try activities. In Study 2, a positive affect induction led to heightened activation of the physical activity goal compared to the control condition. The joy induction in Study 3 led to greater physical activity, and a trend towards greater goal prioritization. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that positive affect enhances the pursuit of physical activity goals. Implications for health behavior theories and interventions are outlined.

The impact of positive affect on health cognitions and behaviours: a meta-analysis of the experimental evidence.

Several reviews suggest that positive affect is associated with improved longevity, fewer physical symptoms, and biological indicators of good health. It is possible that positive affect could influence these outcomes by promoting healthful cognitions and behaviours. The present review identified conceptual pathways from positive affect to health cognitions and behaviour, and used random effects meta-analysis to quantify the impact of positive affect inductions (versus neutral affect conditions) on these outcomes. Literature searches located 54 independent tests that could be included in the review. Across all studies, the findings revealed no reliable effects on intentions (d+ = -.12, 95% CI = -.32 to .08, k = 15) or behaviour (d+ = .15, 95% CI = -.03 to .33, k = 23). There were four reliable effects involving specific cognitions and behaviours, but little clear evidence for generalised benefits or adverse effects of positive emotions on health-related cognitions or actions. Conclusions must be cautious given the paucity of tests available for analysis. The review offers suggestions about research designs that might profitably be deployed in future studies, and calls for additional tests of the impact of discrete positive emotions on health cognitions and behaviour.

Memory processes in the development of reduced-salt foods.

Acceptance of a reduced-salt food is likely to be influenced by a mismatch between the sensory characteristics of a reformulated product and a memory for a previously-encountered formulation. In two initial pilot studies we established the reliability of a new measure of memory for saltiness, based on a method of constant stimuli. We then used this technique to explore the effects of different patterns of repeated exposure on memory for the taste of a reduced-salt soup. Participants (N = 135) were assigned to one of four exposure patterns: (1) reduced-salt, (2) no salt reduction, i.e. regular-salt, (3) reduced- and regular-salt, in an alternating pattern, and (4) gradually declining salt concentration. In the final session, all participants received an identical reduced-salt soup. Memory for the saltiness of this sample was assessed, together with its expected liking. Our results indicate that different interactions with the test soup had little effect on taste memory. Nevertheless, (1) participants remembered the final exposure soup as saltier than the reduced-salt formulation that they had received and (2) remembered salt concentrations correlated with individual ideal salt concentrations. These findings are consistent with contemporary models of reconstructive memory and they illustrate the importance of understanding 'memory for saltiness' in the acceptance of reduced-salt formulations.

Perceived thickness and creaminess modulates the short-term satiating effects of high-protein drinks.

Previous research suggests that increasing beverage protein content enhances subsequent satiety, but whether this effect is entirely attributable to post-ingestive effects of protein or is partly caused by the distinct sensory characteristics imparted by the presence of protein remains unclear. To try and discriminate nutritive from sensory effects of added protein, we contrasted effects of three higher-energy (about 1·2 MJ) and one lower-energy (LE: 0·35 MJ) drink preloads on subsequent appetite and lunch intake. Two higher-energy drinks had 44% of energy from protein, one with the sensory characteristics of a juice drink (HP2, low-sensory protein) and the second a thicker and creamier (HPþ, high-sensory protein) drink. The high-carbohydrate preload (HCþ, high-sensory carbohydrate) was matched for thickness and creaminess to the HPþ drink. Participants (healthy male volunteers, n 26) consumed significantly less at lunch after the HPþ(566 g) and HCþ(572 g) than after HP2 (623 g) and LE (668 g) drinks, although the compensation for drink energy accounted for only 50% of extra energy at best. Appetite ratings indicated that participants felt significantly less hungry and more full immediately before lunch in HPþ and HCþ groups compared with LE, with HP2 being intermediate. The finding that protein generated stronger satiety in the context of a thicker creamier drink (HPþ but not HP2) and that an isoenergetic carbohydrate drink (HCþ), matched in thickness and creaminess to the HPþ drink, generated the same pattern of satiety as HPþ, both suggest an important role for these sensory cues in the development of protein-based satiety.

Validation of food diaries as measures of dietary behaviour change.

This study aimed to validate the ability of a 24-h food diary (the DIET-24) to accurately detect change in children's fruit and vegetable consumption at school snack time following implementation of the Food Dudes healthy eating intervention. Participants were 4- to 9-year-old children from two primary schools in England. There were 148 participants in the intervention school and 43 participants in the no intervention control school. For each child, snack-time fruit and vegetable consumption was measured separately by weight (grammes), and compared with teachers' estimates (to the nearest half portion) using the DIET-24. Both consumption measures were taken at T1 (pre-intervention) and T2 (post-intervention). At each time-point, Spearman rank correlations between the two measures were low to moderate, but significant. However, when compared with weighed measures, the DIET-24 did not always accurately detect significant changes in children's fruit and vegetable consumption following the intervention. To provide sensitive measures of behaviour change, it is important that dietary measures assess as accurately as possible the amount of food consumed, rather than, as is often the case, rely on all-or-none portion estimates. This issue is important for the establishment of a reliable evidence-base for healthy eating interventions.

Dose-dependent effects of beverage protein content upon short-term intake.

Protein is considered to be more satiating than carbohydrate, quantified by energy adjustment and subjective appetite. However, the effect of increasing protein content upon short-term energy adjustment in beverage contexts is unclear. This study used a repeated-measures, cross-over design. 28 male volunteers (18-35 years) ate a standard breakfast in the laboratory and 210 min later consumed one of four preloads 30 min prior to an ad libitum pasta meal. Three of the preloads were isocaloric ( approximately 1155 kJ) mixed composition dairy fruit drinks (300 g) of low (13% protein energy/87% carbohydrate energy), medium (25% protein energy/75% carbohydrate energy) and high (50% protein energy/50% carbohydrate energy) protein content. The control drink was a low energy (328 kJ) alternative. Results indicated a dose response effect of preload protein level on intake (g) at the ad libitum meal. Ad libitum intake was: control (637.6g+/-39.7), low (596.9 g+/-40.5), medium (546.9 g+/-34.7), and high protein (533.6g+/-42.3). 100% compensation was not achieved; however total energy intake after the medium and high protein drinks did not differ significantly from control. There were no significant differences in hunger and fullness ratings. Our findings support the view that increasing the protein composition of beverages relative to carbohydrate proportionally affects short-term subsequent intake in controlled conditions.

Acquired liking for sweet-paired odours is related to the disinhibition but not restraint factor from the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire.

Previous research suggests that women scoring high on dietary restraint may be insensitive to flavour-flavour learning, but no study has yet explored this using the olfactory conditioning paradigm. Accordingly, 56 women who were sweet likers were classified as either high or low on both the Three Factor Eating Questionnaire restraint and disinhibition scales. They evaluated two odours before and after disguised pairings of one odour with 10% sucrose and the other with 0.01% quinine. Liking for the quinine-paired odour decreased post-training, with no effects of restraint or disinhibition. In contrast, the increase in liking for the sucrose-paired odour was significantly greater in women classified as scoring high in disinhibition, but was unaffected by restraint. Sweetness of the sucrose paired odour increased, and bitterness of the quinine-paired odour decreased, similarly in all groups. These data suggest that sensitivity of restrained eaters to flavour-based learning may result from their attitude to the food used as reinforcer rather than some basic failure in the learning process, and also suggest that women scoring high on disinhibition may show heightened sensitivity to hedonic cues.

Satiating effects of protein but not carbohydrate consumed in a between-meal beverage context.

Previous research has suggested that protein is the most satiating macronutrient; however some experiments have found no difference in satiating efficiency of protein and carbohydrate during short intervals after consumption. There is also evidence that the satiating effects of carbohydrate are minimal when in a beverage rather than solid context. To evaluate whether protein-based satiety was evident in a drink context, and clarify further effects of preload time on satiety, the present study compared iso-energetic dairy fruit drink preloads ( approximately 1250 kJ), differing in macronutrient composition and consumed at two time intervals in the morning. Using a counterbalanced within-subjects design, 18 unrestrained lean male volunteers consumed 300 ml of carbohydrate-enriched (CHO), protein-enriched and low-energy control (327 kJ) dairy fruit drinks, 120 min and 30 min before an ad libitum lunch. Significantly less energy was consumed at lunch after the protein (3234 kJ) compared to the control (3468 kJ, p<0.05) and CHO preloads (3588 kJ, p<0.05). However, this was not sufficient to show complete energy compensation. Preload time of consumption did not impact upon any measures. Only satiety ratings at the beginning of lunch varied significantly by preload type, reflecting differences in test meal intake. These findings are consistent with previous research that protein is more satiating than carbohydrate. The roles of sensory and hedonic characteristics are discussed.