Encouraging people to eat a wide variety of foods to ensure they meet all their dietary needs may backfire, according to a new scientific statement from the American Heart Association that provides an overview of recent scientific studies.

“Eating a more diverse diet might be associated with eating a greater variety of both healthy and unhealthy foods” said Marcia C. de Oliveira Otto, Ph.D., lead author of the statement published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation. “Combined, such an eating pattern may lead to increased food consumption and obesity.There is no evidence that greater overall dietary diversity promotes healthy weight or optimal eating.
There is some evidence that a wider variety of food options in a meal may delay people’s feeling of satiation (fullness), increasing the amount of food they eat.
Limited evidence suggests that greater dietary diversity is associated with eating more calories, poor eating patterns and weight gain in adults.
Instead of telling people to eat a variety of foods, the statement authors conclude that dietary recommendations should emphasize adequate consumption of plant foods, such as fruit, vegetables, beans and whole grains, low-fat dairy products, non-tropical vegetable oils, nuts, poultry and fish, and limit consumption of red meat, sweets and sugary drinks. The American Heart Association Dietary Recommendations and the DASH Diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) are both examples of healthy eating patterns.
“Selecting a range of healthy foods, which fits one’s budget or taste, and sticking with them, is potentially better at helping people maintain a healthy weight than choosing a greater range of foods that may include less healthy items such as donuts, chips, fries and cheeseburgers, even in moderation,” said Otto, who is also assistant professor of epidemiology, human genetics and environmental science at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Texas.

Source: American Heart Association

Full bibliographic information

Dietary Diversity: Implications for Obesity Prevention in Adult Populations A Science Advisory From the American Heart Association