Situational Influences and Eating Habits

What and how people choose to eat is not a conscious decision; it is affected by colors, smells, lighting, plate size and culture. Numerous studies on eating habits have revealed some surprising facts:

• A bigger spoon causes people to eat 15% more.
• A bigger plate causes people to eat 25% more.

• A cold restaurant will make people eat more food, as will fresh flowers on the table.
• People will eat 28% more food if the plates are cleared from the table, rather than piled up.
• Red tablecloths will increase the appetite and people will eat more.

• Teens who buy lunch with cash buy more junk food than if they use a debit card.
• People will eat more M&M’s if they are in 10 colors rather than 7 because they’ll crave the variety. People who have more menu options eat more and if there is any semblance of variety (colors) it ups the intake even more.
• In an experiment, people in a movie theater were given tubs of stale popcorn, those who got bigger tubs still ate 35% more.
• Professional bartenders cannot overcome this one– they always pour more alcohol into a short wide glass rather than a tall skinny glass.
• People who eat at Subway, thinking it is healthy, compensate later by filling up on more snacks than a McDonalds eater.

by Mkt Teachers