The Halo of "Organic" vs. "Regular" Foods

The Halo Effect Can Hurt Your Diet

If organic foods top your shopping list, you’re probably not doing your waistline any favors. Why? Because when we believe something is “healthy” or “good for us,” we tend to put a positive spin on everything about that product – including the fat and sugar content. Psychologists call it the halo effect, and here’s how it hurts your diet:

Researchers at Cornell University asked volunteers to compare foods that were labeled either “regular” or “organic.” Each participant sampled chips, yogurt, and cookies. Then they answered a series of questions about each product. Here’s the catch: All of the items were organic – and they were all identical. They were just labeled differently to see if the names changed people’s responses. They did. EVERYONE said the products labeled “organic” tasted better. They also said that the samples they believed to be “organic” were lower in fat and higher in fiber. Of course, that led them to underestimate the number of calories in each sample. Here’s the scary part: Even though they were eating cookies and chips, most of the testers said they considered them healthy when they were labeled “organic.”
What’s the take-away from this? You can’t judge a food by its label.

If you want to be in control of your eating, your best bet is to read the entire list of ingredients, limit your calorie intake, and measure your portion sizes.