Efeitos da exposição digital a vídeos curtos na percepção sensorial e emocional durante o consumo de chocolate

Abstract

The increasing use of short videos on social media platforms like TikTok® and Instagram® has raised concerns about their influence on body image, mood, and eating habits, especially among young adults. Exposure to content focused on healthy eating can lead to body image distortions, mental and eating disorders, and unsatisfactory eating habits. However, there are no studies that link these factors to the sensory and emotional perception of food. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of exposure to short videos on healthy eating and body image on mood, body image perception, and sensory and emotional perceptions during the consumption of chocolate with different types of cocoa in university students. This is a randomized crossover experimental trial, conducted at the Sensory Analysis Laboratory in the Department of Food Science at the Federal University of Lavras. Undergraduate and graduate students from the Federal University of Lavras were recruited. The study was conducted in two stages (T1 and T2), with randomization of participants (n = 51) into a control group or an exposure group, a 7-day washout period between stages, and crossover of participants after the washout. In both stages, there was a control group and an exposure group. In the control group, there was no video viewing; only the completion of the Brunel Mood Scale and the Situational Body Satisfaction Scale, and sensory analysis using the Rate-All-That-Apply method of two chocolate samples (28% and 70%). In the exposure group, there was exposure to an 11-minute compilation of short videos on healthy eating and body image taken from Instagram® and TikTok®, and participants completed the Brunel Mood Scale and the Situational Body Satisfaction Scale before and after viewing the video. Sensory analysis of the chocolates (28% and 70%) was performed after the questionnaires were completed post-exposure. The Rate-AllThat-Apply sensory analysis verified sensory and emotional aspects of two chocolate samples with different cocoa percentages (28% and 70%). There was no change in overall mood after viewing the video, but the factors of dissatisfaction and fat and lower parts were altered. The chocolate with the highest overall acceptance before and after viewing the video was milk chocolate. The sensory aspects were not altered by viewing the video, but it did alter the emotional aspects of contentment and amusement.