Imagine a snack that not only physically melts in your mouth with every bite, but whose calories seem to disappear just as quickly. Magic, right?
Your brain thinks so, thanks to a phenomenon known as “vanishing caloric density.”
But this mental magic trick could actually lead you to eat more calories — and pack on unwanted pounds.
Many people reach for ultra-processed foods when they want a quick bite, with more than half of 5,000 US adults admitting they’ve eaten an entire bag of chips in a single sitting.
This may be because of “vanishing caloric density,” which, while not a formal nutrition term, describes airy snacks that dissolve on the tongue, tricking the brain into thinking the calories disappear just as fast.
In reality, the brain doesn’t fully register how much has been consumed, making it easier to overeat.
This bypasses the body’s typical process for recognizing when you’re eating — and when you’re full — according to Angela Graham, a Phoenix-based nutrition expert.
“The brain already takes 20 minutes to catch up to your stomach with any meal, which is why you sometimes feel uncomfortably full a while after eating,” Graham told The Post. “So with vanishing caloric density, this effect is really amplified since these foods are so easy to eat.”
The perfect example? Cheese puffs. They’re light, airy and dissolve instantly.
Other examples include chips, popcorn, cotton candy, ice cream, rice cakes, wafer cookies, dried fruits, queso dip and cookie butter.
“These foods tend to be highly processed, aerated and formulated with fat and sugar combinations that dissolve fast on the tongue,” Mackenzie Mitchel, a registered dietitian, told The Post.
While occasionally indulging in these types of snacks isn’t likely to have a major impact on your health, eating them regularly can crowd out more nutrient-dense foods.
“An example would be how much easier it is to eat 500 calories of potato chips versus roasted potatoes, which have more water, fiber and volume,” Graham explained.
Packaging can also play a role in disguising how much you’re actually eating, Graham added, since these snacks are often “consumed from large bags or containers without paying attention to portion size.”
These snacks may also interfere with the body’s natural hunger signals.
“Repeatedly eating foods with high vanishing caloric density can disrupt the body’s natural hunger hormones over time and contribute to unhealthy eating patterns,” Mitchel said. “Your body doesn’t register the calories being consumed and therefore it leads to overeating.”
And consistently eating ultra-processed foods doesn’t just lead to excess calorie intake and weight gain. It also raises the risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and other health problems.
To avoid binging on those light and airy foods, Graham recommends prioritizing meals built around whole foods that contain protein, fiber and healthy fats.
Mitchel also suggests taking a moment to read the ingredient list before digging in.
“If sugar, high-fructose corn syrup or refined flour is the top ingredient, then it’s likely ultra-processed and possibly vanishing calorically dense foods,” she said.
Both experts also recommend avoiding distractions while eating — like having the TV on in the background —and pre-portioning snacks into a bowl instead of eating directly from the package.
