Junk Food and Grocery Shopping With Cash

Can’t keep junk food out of your house? A new study shows you’re less likely to splurge on treats when you buy your groceries with cash.

You go to the grocery store with the best intentions and leave with a cart full of cookies, ice cream and chips. Sound familiar? If you have a tough time resisting junk food at the market, you might do less damage if you leave the plastic at home and pay in cash. According to a study in the Journal of Consumer Research, people are more likely to buy unhealthy foods when they pay using credit or debit cards.

Research shows that people have a more difficult time parting with dollar bills than swiping their credit card. For this reason, we tend to make fewer impulse purchases when we pay in cash. At the supermarket, those with the most spender’s guilt tend to splurge the least. Try it out the next time you go grocery shopping.