You Love Asparagus, Remember?

.. You HATE (competing station call letters), REMEMBER?

Faced with a choice between chocolate chip cookies and steamed asparagus, most of us would probably grab the sugary treat. But as some college students recently learned, you may be able to trick yourself into thinking you'd actually prefer healthier foods over sweets.

It's called the False-Food Memory Diet and scientists say it shows promise for weight-watchers.

In a recent study, college students were asked to fill out surveys about their food likes and dislikes as children. Researchers then revealed the results; some true, some made up: Some students were told that as kids, strawberry ice cream upset their stomachs. Others were told they liked asparagus. The idea was to re-program the students' natural choices.

So can a dieter develop aversions to certain foods based on a previous bad associations -- real or invented?

Researchers think so. Elizabeth Loftus, a psychology professor at the University of California at Irvine, analyzed the study. "While we know food preferences developed in childhood continue into adulthood, this work suggests that the mere belief one had a negative experience could be sufficient to influence food choices as an adult," Loftus says.

JA WONDERS: This probably applies to many other product 'experiences' too.

Hmmm.

Could you 'implant' a false, but negative memory about a competitive radio station in your listener's mind that would result in her preferring your station because your dial setting and call letters evoke more positive associative memories?

You KNOW that the answer is YES, and what goes on between the songs .. on your request lines, listener emails.. and appearances can have a big impact on this, for both you and your competition!