Macronutrient and dietary energy density influences on the intake of free-living humans

The influence of the composition of foods, their macronutrient contents and the dietary energy densities on intake, were investigated by analyzing 7-day diet diary reports from 669 free-living normal adult humans who adequately reported intake. The analyses revealed subtle but small macronutrient specific relationships with intake. Dietary energy density, however, was found to have large reliable short-term relationships with intake. The results support the hypothesis that short-term intake is controlled on the basis of the volume of nutrients in the stomach at the end of the meal and not upon their food energy or macronutrient contents. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.