An experimental study conducted in Austria found that listening to disliked music decreased general desire to eat but increased the desire for high-sugar foods; listening to liked music or not listening to music was linked to a preference for low-sugar foods. The effect is explained by compensatory consumption or emotional eating, where mood shifts drive craving for rewarding foods even when overall hunger is reduced.

This article is of interest to psychology readers because it illustrates how affective states can bias food-related decisions and preferences, highlighting mood as a driver of compensatory eating independent of attention to food cues.

Article Title: Listening to bad music makes you crave sugar, study finds
Link to PsyPost Article: https://www.psypost dot org/listening-to-bad-music-makes-you-crave-sugar-study-finds/

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#musicpsychology #emotionaleating #compensatoryconsumption #foodchoices #affectandbehavior

University of Michigan: What’s in your cart? New tech helps shoppers make healthier, affordable food choices. “Unlike typical apps that evaluate foods one at a time, the Food Information System looks at the entire shopping cart—recognizing that grocery decisions are a balancing act between cost, nutrition and personal preferences. The research is important because by capturing how choices […]

This brief highlights how expectancy can shape taste perception, a phenomenon with potential relevance for understanding client experiences around food choices, cravings, and self-regulation. For mental health professionals, the material underscores the role of cognition and belief systems in evaluative processes, which may inform therapeutic discussions about dieting, reward cues, and motivation. A concise takeaway is that expectations about a beverage can alter its hedonic value, offering a lens into how cognitive framing interacts with sensory experience in daily decision-making.

Article Title: Your brain can trick you into liking artificial sweeteners

Link to Science Daily Mind-Brain News: https://www dot sciencedaily dot com/releases/2026/04/260408225943 dot htm

Your brain might be quietly deciding what tastes good before you even take a sip. Researchers found that simply changing what people thought they were drinking—sugar or artificial sweetener—could dramatically shift how much they enjoyed it. When participants believed a drink had artificial sweeteners, real sugar tasted less enjoyable, but when they expected sugar, even artificially sweetened drinks became more pleasurable.

via Mind & Brain News -- ScienceDaily https://www dot sciencedaily dot com/news/mind_brain/

April 9, 2026 at 09:34AM

#tasteperception #cognition #expectancyeffects #foodchoices #mentalhealthawareness

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Understanding Ultra-Processed Foods: A Growing Concern

People want to avoid ultra-processed foods for health, but experts can't agree on what they are. This makes choosing healthy food confusing.

#ProcessedFood, #HealthyEating, #Nutrition, #FoodChoices, #Diet

https://newsletter.tf/processed-food-definition-confusion/

Many people want to eat less ultra-processed food for better health. However, experts have different ideas about what 'ultra-processed' means. This makes it hard for people to know which foods to choose.

#ProcessedFood, #HealthyEating, #Nutrition, #FoodChoices, #Diet

https://newsletter.tf/processed-food-definition-confusion/

Why Is the American Diet So Deadly?

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/01/13/why-is-the-american-diet-so-deadly

#HackerNews #AmericanDiet #DeadlyHealth #FoodChoices #NutritionAwareness #HealthCrisis