PITTSBURGH, Dec 15, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- U.S. holiday and weekend eating
differs significantly from weekday food consumption, U.S. researchers found.
J. Jeffrey Inman of the University of Pittsburgh has suggested the U.S.
Department of Agriculture incorporate guidelines for holiday and weekend eating
into its food pyramid of optimal nutrition guidelines for each food category.
Inman and Adwait Karee of Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn., said Americans
like to gather around high-calorie feasts.
The researchers studied two years' worth of data on consumers' eating behavior
and found the quantity and quality of foods eaten during a meal and in the
course of a day differ considerably from that of weekends and holidays.
Knowing a weekend can be just as dangerous to the diet as a holiday dinner
should help consumers, doctors and nutritionists fight obesity, Inman said.
The study was published in the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing.
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Copyright 2009 by United Press International