FOOD STIMULI AND GENDER

I

Abstract
The literature consistently reports that women have a healthier food choice pattern than men.
Food choices have significant health implications, and research can help to determine
possible gender differences in food choice in order to better support necessary dietary
changes. Therefore, gender attentional bias toward high-calorie and low-calorie foods and
sweet and non-sweet foods was measured using eye-tracking technology. It was examined
whether pre-existing preferences, attitudes, and food intake history correlated with the eyetracking measures. In this study, men displayed a higher attentional bias toward high-calorie
foods than women. Food preferences and dietary intake demonstrated a strong correlation
with eye-tracking data in men; men who preferred high-calorie foods paid less attention to
low-calorie foods and men who preferred low-calorie food paid less attention to high calorie
foods. The results also suggest that more attention was paid to low-calorie foods when
participants had stronger attitudes toward a healthy diet. No significant gender bias was
present between sweet and non-sweet foods. However, the level of processing of low-calorie
stimuli seemed to influence the perception of food stimuli.

Keywords
Eye-tracking, Food Stimuli, Gender Bias, Sex Differences