Do you know your diet personality type? No, neither do we, but identifying how your personality influences your eating habits can make or break your diet success.
Are you a thinker? Or perhaps a battler? These are just two of the diet personality types identified by CSIRO scientists that could be having a big influence on your eating habits and waistline.
The nation’s leading science body has identified 325 possible diet ‘personalities’ in a study of more than 245,000 Australians and their eating habits during 2021.
Researchers point out that the pandemic has severely disrupted our routines and elevated stress levels, which can create bad eating habits.
Read: Do intermittent fasting diets work, and what are the challenges?
“We are seeing people cope differently with COVID-19 stresses and uncertainty, which has included disruptions to health, fitness and social routines,” says lead author of the study, Dr Emily Brindal.
“We hope to help people achieve greater success on their journey to rediscover their health by playing to their individual strengths while also helping them to gain better control over their weaknesses.”
Of the 325 diet personalities, researchers found six main types dominated.
The Thinker
This type is goal-oriented, motivated and analytical when it comes to achieving diet goals. However, the Thinker is also usually quite sensitive to negative feedback and any stray comments about their weight or what they’re eating can have them spiralling out of control.
Read: Why eating a fibre-rich diet can boost your mood
The Battler
This eater likely experiences and gives in to food temptations regularly. At the same time, they are usually wracked with guilt and stress each time they eat something ‘naughty’. This vicious cycle often causes the diet plans to be unsuccessful. Nine out of 10 Battlers are women.
The Craver
The Craver is prone to really strong food cravings that can lead to overeating in ‘tempting’ situations. Of all the food personality types studied, the Cravers recorded the highest average Body Mass Index (BMI).
The Pleaser
This personality type is the classic people-pleaser. The Pleaser can be sensitive to any social comparisons about weight, and is easily influenced by the diets of their friends.
The Foodie
Passionate about all things food, including the experience of preparing and eating good quality meals. The Foodie loves variety and has the best diet quality of all the personality types. It’s more common for men than women to identify as Foodies.
Read: Things that happen when you overhaul your diet
The Socialiser
This eater may have diet goals of their own, but they will be quickly pushed to the side if their dietary requirements interfere with social settings. If switching to the low-fat option is going to ‘kill the mood’ of the event for them, then any diet goals go out the window.
The CSIRO study found that from these six personality types, more than 20 per cent of people fall into either the Thinker or the Battler categories. Dr Brindal says the information is valuable to nutritionists and could help tailor more effective diet plans.
“Too often, diets are developed with a one-size-fits-all approach that ignores the fact that some people behave or think differently to others,” says Dr Brindal.
“Working with your diet type could help you achieve better weight loss outcomes in the longer term.
“The … enhancements use personality and behavioural science to speak uniquely to people identifying with different diet types so they can embark on a weight-loss journey that better suits them.”
If you’re interested in finding out your diet personality, take the CSIRO Diet Types quiz here.
Which personality type are you? Are you happy with your diet and your weight? Can you stick to a diet? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
If you enjoy our content, don’t keep it to yourself. Share our free eNews with your friends and encourage them to sign up.
