If it's good it must be bad: the indirect effect of temptation strength on self-control through perceived unhealthiness.

Previous research has shown that people tend to consume less from foods they consider more tempting. However, the underlying mechanism for these counterintuitive findings is still unknown. The current paper is the first to test the theoretically implied suggestion that the effect of food temptation strength on consumption is indirect and can be explained through temptations' perceived unhealthiness. Two studies were conducted among female students who were concerned about their weight to test the effect of food temptation strength on perceived unhealthiness as well as the amount that was consumed of the products. Results showed that temptation strength was associated with unhealthiness such that weak temptations were - unjustly - perceived to be less unhealthy compared to strong temptations, while perceived unhealthiness was negatively related to indulgence. As a consequence, people may consume more from weak than from strong temptations. It is concluded that weak temptations tend to be underestimated and can be more challenging for successful self-regulation than strong temptations.