Caloric intake and the source of calories were assessed over 3 weeks. (A) Rats with daily access to cafeteria diet consumed significantly more calories over the 3 weeks of feeding than the chow only group (n = 14-19/group). (B) The cafeteria diet group consumed significantly more calories from cafeteria diet food items than from chow pellets (n = 19). (C) The chow only group consumed more calories from chow pellets than the cafeteria diet group (n = 14-19/group). (D) Cafeteria diet access resulted in increased weight gain over the 3 weeks of feeding (n = 14-19/group). (E) Four weeks of cafeteria diet feeding significantly increased body weight, compared to chow only fed controls (main effect of diet, p < 0.001, two-way ANOVA, n = 44-46/group). (F) Throughout the 4 weeks of cafeteria diet access, the cafeteria diet group consumes significantly less chow than the chow only group (main effect of diet, p < 0.0001, two-way ANOVA, n = 10-11/group). * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001, Bonferroni post hoc test.