Friday, 27 January 2012
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Plate Color Determines Serving Size
A recent study in the Journal of Consumer Research that another factor that influences how much food a person eats is the color of their plate.
The study sent their subjects to a buffet serving pasta. They were split into two groups--one group was served Alfredo sauce (white color) and one was served marinara (red color). Subjects in each line were arbitrarily given red or white plates.
The findings were simple: Subjects who had matching plates and food (white plate and Alfredo or red plate and marinara) served themselves more food! These results suggest that when food and plate color don't match, we eat less.
Logically, this makes sense. With same colored plates, it becomes more difficult to see how much we have served ourselves. Our plates may create the illusion that we have very little food on them. But with contrast plates, how much food we serve ourselves is easier to spot.This was a surprise to me since I had heard (albeit from an unreliable source--former ABC sitcom Notes from the Underbelly) that red dishes actually make you hungrier and eat more.
What do you think? Do you think dish color affects appetite or is this just an accidental correlation?
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- From: sbaral@xanga
- About Me: I'm a Rutgers University graduate who discovered a passion for writing in college when I found myself enjoying researching for and writing papers instead of working at biology labs. In my spare time, I enjoy cooking and watching movies--I am in pursuit of learning to fluently speak French and Italian after developing an interest in these languages from watching foreign films. Apart from foreign films and cooking, my interests include photography, traveling, art history and interior design. twitter.com/sushbaral
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Comments (10)
that should be a very interesting study.
It is possible, but they are not accounting for individual variation. Ideally, this should be duplicated multiple times around the country, to make sure it was not simply by chance.
That's very interesting... and the pasta lon that plate looks delicious!
Makes sense.
I heard that white plates make you eat more once you've been served.
Nah.
I generally eat more when there's no plate like chip & dip or those parties where they give you a napkin and "finger foods" are everywhere etc.
Cool. I have aa book called "mindless eating" that has a bunch of neat studies like that
hard to say... it's a possibility, but presentation and whether the food looked appealing could've played into the results as well