Lazy eating could be beneficial to one's health, provided all food options offered nearby continued to remain healthy choices, according to a study released by researchers from St. Bonaventure University in New York.

Offered both low-calorie and high-calorie foods, researchers noted participants behaviour tended to veer towards which is nearer for them to access, not which is healthier among the two types.

The study involved 26 men and 30 women who "ranged across the full spectrum" of body types, from healthy to obese. Researchers instructed everyone not to eat for two hours before the experiment.

Ushered into a kitchen and invited to sit down alone at a small round table, each was told they would be left for a while as the researcher gets the questionnaires. In the meantime, "there are foods in the bowls if you would like something to eat."

One bowl featured fresh apple slices while the other had high-fat movie-theater popcorn.

There were three groups tested with the bowls of food randomly placed. The first group had the healthier food within nearer access, the second was the popcorn while the third group had easier access to both food types.

"The far location," the researchers pointed out, "required participants to get up and walk to the bowl in order to reach the food."

Asked which they preferred, the students' unanimous reply was the popcorn.

But it wasn't the bowl of popcorn that was always the first one emptied of its contents.

"When popcorn was near, more popcorn was consumed," the researchers report. "But when apply slices were near, more apples were consumed."

"It says that [laziness] has an advantage for health," Gregory Privitera, an associate professor of psychology, said. "Even when there's another preferred food in the environment, people will still take whatever is easiest to get to."

What's terrifying was when both were close by, participants took an equal amount of each, thereby consuming the greatest total amount of food among the three groups.

"In terms of your kids wanting snacks, make healthier food freely available," Mr Privitera said. "They'll probably go for it, simply because it's an easier option."