Taxpayer-Funded Study Tests Delaying Access To Unhealthy Snacks In Vending Machines

WASHINGTON -- The National Institutes of Health is putting up $240,000 to fund a study to determine how delaying access to "unhealthy" snacks in vending machines might deter consumers from choosing them.

Chicago's Rush University Medical Center is conducting the study, which is trying to determine the delay interval that produces the largest improvement in purchasing rates for snacks classified as "healthy" without harming overall vending sales.

The study titled called -- "Time Over Money? A Novel System To Influence Snack Machine Choices" -- is also analyzing the impacts of differential pricing between snacks classified as "healthy" and "unhealthy" in vending machines in conjunction with time delays and the impact on consumers' purchasing decisions.

"This study not only tests a compelling theory about the effects of time delays and immediate reward on food choice, but evaluates the efficacy and feasibility of a novel intervention to improve the healthfulness of snack choices in worksites, schools and other settings," NIH said in its description of the project.

The study began last August and is budgeted through the end of June. Click here to check it out.