The bigger your plate, the more you'll eat
ANNE-MARIE TOBIN
Canadian Press
People unknowingly "booby-trap" their own homes in a way that can
lead to overeating, a nutritional expert who has conducted hundreds of
food studies said Thursday.
Bigger bowls lead to bigger servings, and if food is at hand, it
doesn't even have to be fresh for people to keep on nibbling, Brian
Wansink told a joint meeting of the Canadian Diabetes Association and
the Canadian Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism.
Some people blame obesity on fast food, the government and food
companies, but the food fight really begins at home, he said.
The solution isn't concentration and willpower, he told more than 3,000
delegates at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
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"One thing we can start doing is start re-engineering our environment
so it mindlessly works for us, rather than against us," said
Professor Wansink, who lives in Ithaca, N.Y., and is director of the
Cornell Food and Brand Lab at Cornell University.
Most people overeat because if food is put in front of them, they'll
eat it, said Prof. Wansink, whose team has led companies to introduce
smaller size 100-calorie portions.
One study involved two groups of graduate students serving themselves
snacks from either large serving bowls in one room or smaller serving
bowls in another room at a Super Bowl party. Their individual bowls
were surreptitiously weighed, and it was found that those who served
themselves from large bowls took portions that contained 53 per cent
more calories, he said.
The bowls were coded, so that leftovers could also be tracked, and it
turned out that the group that served themselves from large bowls also
ate 59 per cent more food, in general, than the group that served
themselves from smaller bowls, Prof. Wansink said.
Another study, conducted at a Chicago movie theatre, showed that people
will even eat food that's not very good if it's in front of them.
Moviegoers at a movie were given buckets of popcorn - either freshly
popped, or five-day-old rancid popcorn.
"When people ate it, it didn't even crunch, it sort of squeaked,"
he said as he described the old popcorn, eliciting groans and laughter
from his audience.
Much of the fresh popcorn was quickly gobbled up before the credits
finished running before the movie, he said.
As for the recipients of the old popcorn, they would taste it, put it
down, wait a few minutes, then try again.
"By the end of the movie, they're still nibbling away at this, and
wincing every time they have a bite," he said.
Prof. Wansink also said his research has shown that people can reduce
their intake by replacing wide, short drinking glasses with tall
narrower ones and using smaller serving spoons.
In addition, he said plates should be filled before they're served at
the table and serving bowls should be kept off the table to avoid
mindless refilling.
Sharon Zeiler, senior manager of nutrition for the Canadian Diabetes
Association, welcomed Prof. Wansink's research, and said dietitians
have employed many of these techniques.
"Anything with science now is becoming extremely evidence-based, and
so it's wonderful to have good strong evidence," she said.
About 35 to 40 per cent of Canadian meals are eaten in restaurants, Ms.
Zeiler noted, adding that the research can be applied by restaurant
owners and people who eat at home.
Buffet-style restaurants could put salads out in smaller bowls - and
that would encourage people to take smaller portions, she said.
And for at-home buffets on occasions like Thanksgiving, Ms. Zeiler said
the hosts could use two small bowls for mashed potatoes, rather than
one huge bowl.
Food and nutrition are hot topics at the conference. Canada has more
than two million diabetics, Ms. Zeiler said, and being overweight and
not getting enough physical activity can be contributing factors for
people with Type 2.
Many people have the disease but don't realize it until symptoms like
blurry eyesight or hypertension lead to a diagnosis, she added.
According to Prof. Wansink, every day starts with a series of food
choices. At breakfast, decisions might include cereal or a bagel,
two-thirds of a bowl or a full bowl, sugar or no sugar, skim milk or 2
per cent.
"The typical person believes they make about 30 decisions related to
food a day. By the end of the day, most people have made well over 200
decisions," he said.
"But the problem is, nobody realizes that. Most of us believe we make
a few here, there and wherever. What we're not aware of is how the
environment is influencing us again and again
Diva
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