Sunflower oil and coconut oil in ice cream changed later food choices
What it found
In 36 women, ice cream made with more sunflower oil led to fewer snack calories later that evening.
Ice cream with less sunflower oil and more coconut oil led to less fat eaten at dinner.
What they found
Studies in people
Less fat at dinner
When the ice cream had mostly coconut oil and only 25% sunflower oil, the women ate noticeably less fat at their dinner. They also chose fewer high-fat savoury foods compared with when the ice cream had 75% sunflower oil.
Fewer snack calories later
When the ice cream had 75% sunflower oil, the women ate fewer calories from their evening snack box. They also chose less protein, fewer carbohydrates and more fruit compared with the mostly coconut oil version.
Appetite stayed the same
The type of oil in the ice cream did not change how hungry or full the women felt during the day. Their overall calorie intake across dinner and snacks combined was about the same for all three versions.
Texture differences noticed
The women rated the ice cream with 75% coconut oil and 25% sunflower oil as thicker and creamier than the other two versions. This happened even though a smaller pilot test with 30 people found no texture difference.
What the authors conclude
- They say that eating a standard portion of ice cream with different ratios of these fats can modestly change what people choose to eat next.
- They note that fats mainly found in coconut oil showed their effect earlier at dinner, while fats mainly found in sunflower oil showed their effect later during snacking.
- They add that the differences were small and more research is needed before drawing firm conclusions.
How it was done
Fats are a key energy source but often do little to make people feel full compared with protein or carbohydrates. The authors wanted to see if swapping the type of fat in a food, rather than cutting the amount, could change how much people eat next without making the food taste worse.
They gave 36 healthy women a fixed 150g portion of ice cream containing 15g of fat. The ice cream was made with three different mixes of coconut oil and sunflower oil. Forty-five minutes later the women ate as much dinner as they wanted, then took home a box of snacks for the evening. Each woman tried all three ice creams on separate days one week apart.
What it can’t tell you
- This study only looked at one meal and one evening of snacking, so it cannot show whether these effects last over time.
- It only included healthy women, so the results might differ for men or people carrying extra weight.
- The changes seen were small, and people might simply have eaten more later to make up for eating less earlier.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- University of Birmingham, UK; University of Liverpool, UK
The paper
- Title
- Coconut and sunflower oil ratios in ice cream influence subsequent food selection and intake
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Rizzo G, Masic U, Harrold JA, Norton JE, Halford JC (2016). Coconut and sunflower oil ratios in ice cream influence subsequent food selection and intake. Physiology & behavior. doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2016.05.040Free full textPubMed 27235735DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error