People who choose from a large variety of menu items are more likely to make healthy choices than people who choose from shorter menus, say researchers from Stanford University and the University of Pennsylvania.
In this new study published in the Journal of Consumer Research, participants were asked to choose from different sized assortments of pictures of ice cream flavours - some low-fat and others regular fat.
The group that chose from a larger assortment chose low-fat ice cream more often than then the group that chose from a smaller assortment of ice cream flavours.
In a second experiment, participants were offered different sized of selections of cookies and fruit.
More people took fruit from a larger assortment than from a smaller assortment (76 percent versus 55 percent).
The researchers concluded that assortment size influences whether we make healthy or less healthy food choices however more research is needed to see if these findings apply to all situations.
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