Doyle savored a home-cooked meal of chicken and rice, broccoli, rolls, salad and strawberry shortcake. Unlike most college students, he gets meals like this every day, on the condition that he always cleans his plate. And snacking between meals is a no-no.

Sound a bit like the good ol' days with Mom?

Then "Mom" has come to State College, and she's paying Doyle Stevick, $300 to be her kid for three months.

But Stevick (senior-math and history) has no illusions about getting her to do his laundry, because "Mom" is actually a study conducted by the University's nutrition department.

The 13 1/2-week study, headed by Penny Kris-Etherton, professor of nutrition, and sponsored by the Chocolate Manufacturers of America, investigates the effects of one chocolate bar a day on the cholesterol levels of those eating a healthy diet.

"I've never been eating this healthy for this long in my life," Stevick said. He and the other participants in the study may eat only the balanced diet provided for them, with no late-night pizza binges or grilled stickies allowed.

Those in the study eat a diet modeled on one recommended by the American Heart Association. Consisting of foods like chicken, steak, salad, vegetables and rolls, the menu rotates weekly, said Carolyn Anderson, clinical coordinator of the study.

Participants are served food equal in calories to the amount needed daily to maintain their weight, and must consume everything given to them. Drinks, outside of what is provided, are also limited to diet soda, water and only one beer a day, she said.

"The one-beer factor kills," said Carl Wagner (senior-psychology), another of the participants.

"One beer is just a tease," agreed Christian Kuhn (senior-hospital administration). "Try eating one M&M or one potato chip."

Kuhn and Wagner, like all the others in the study, are male. Participation in the study was limited to males because men and women respond differently to diet regulation, said Elaine McDonnell, one of five nutrition graduate students working with the study.

Statistically men also have more of a problem with high cholesterol levels, she said.

The men in the study have blood cholesterol levels measured five times during the semester, McDonnell said.

Blood is taken at each phase change in the study, of which there are four. The first and third phases of the study are called washout phases, and they make sure that the chocolate bars are the only variation in diet, Anderson said.

During the second phase of the study, half of the men receive a chocolate bar in their lunch while the other half gets the usual snack of soda and a pretzel.

The second half of the men receive chocolate bars in the fourth phase, Anderson said.

Whether or not the men are in their "chocolate-bar phase," they all receive bag lunches every day. These lunches consist of sandwiches like tuna, peanut butter and jelly, or seafood pitas. Also included is a piece of fruit and popcorn, pretzels or crackers (or -- for part of the semester -- the chocolate bar).

"The bag lunches are a bummer," said Tom Ciambrone (non-degree-math).

This semester's study originally started with 32 participants, drawn from the community as a whole but primarily comprised of college students. The number of men in the study is now down to 28, Anderson said.

Carter Weiss (senior-accounting) is one of these 28.

"I'm embarrassed to be eating so well," Weiss said.