So much goes on around the table while you’re eating, and so much of it can affect your appetite. Subtle cues—lights, temperature, aromas, the shape of a wine glass, a whiff of espresso—can all tempt you to overindulge.
But a recent analysis of dozens of studies on “food ambience” (those factors around you that tickle the senses) suggests you don’t have to give in. Instead, experts say, you can make the environment work for your waistline. Here’s how:
Look before you eat
The brighter the lights, the quicker you’ll eat. Physiologically speaking, light intensity revs up the nervous system, and you’ll often respond by eating too fast. Result: You’ll end up stuffing your stomach before your brain can tell you that you’re full. Unfortunately, dim lighting is no solution, because it can hide signals of satiety. “We lose track of what we have eaten,” says Brian Wansink, PhD, a nutrition-science expert at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. That’s why people tend to eat more in candlelit restaurants; they linger, picking at their plates even if they’re full.
The antidote: If you have to eat in a brightly lit restaurant like a fast-food joint, Wansink says, remind yourself—repeatedly—to eat slowly. In dimly lit restaurants with more romantic settings, pick one: drink, appetizer, or dessert. And keep yourself attuned to your feelings of fullness. When they come, ask your server to box up what you haven’t finished.
Dine on the patio
As a general rule, the hotter the climate, the less people eat, says Nanette Stroebele, PhD, a neuropsychologist at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Denver. She co-authored the recent report on food ambience in Nutrition. Heat slows down your metabolism, so your energy needs and your hunger decline as the mercury rises. Use that to your benefit.
The smart strategy: Ask for an outdoor table whenever the weather cooperates. Out where it’s balmy, people seem to prefer food that’s less dense and usually less caloric (salads instead of mashed potatoes, for example).
Next page: Tame your tableware
Comments (14)
interesting article… xoxo!
good to know!!
In addition to eating slowly, you should take very small bites and chew completely.
Good article!
I find it hard to eat slow cause my boyfriend eats fast and then wants to get going. Plus he is always yelling at me to eat my food when it is hot not when it is cold.
My husband is the same way – eats fast and then tells me to hurry up. I always remind him that he’s the one eating at a ridiculous pace….not me! Plus, I have a two year old, so typically I spend half of the meal assiting her in using her napkin, using her silverware correctly, not spilling her milk, etc etc. So, that tends to assist with the eating slow, if I even get to eat!
All my life, I’ve suffered from low-self esteme due to verbal abuse from my mother about my excess pounds as a child. In my teen years (I’m 47 now), I became anorexic and was given one month to live. By then I was only 70 lbs. Today, I’m worse than I every was. I WILL NOT go out of the house until I lose the 10 lbs. I’ve gained from having to retire on disability due to other health issues. I’m under a doctor’s care, but that’s a waste of time for anyone with an eating disorder. There really is NOTHING that can be done about it. There is always a 70 to 80% chance of one or more relapses. I can sit and talk to a psychologist all day about it, and there is absolutely NO WAY in the world that’s going to help me. I’m seeing one now. What a joke! No one can even fathom what it’s like to walk in an anorexic’s shoes unless you’ve been there yourself.
The thing that I find really helps is ask immediately for a to go box. Divide your meal in half. Eat what is left on your plate. You won’t “Accidentally” eat too much. I know even with ALL my “intensions” I get to talkin’ and before I know it, my food is all gone and my tummy is hatin’ me. PLUS you have another meal for the next day.
all these methods are of limited help. Many of us suffer from cravings due to soaring blood sugar levels, some of us have pre diabetes unbeknownst to us. We are still hearing the tired advice of “eat more… (whole grain or no)cereal,oatmeal, bagels, yoghurt(fruited with some form of sweetener even of small amt,milk sugar galore non fat milk, pasta,rice, and other high starch that boost our glucose levels so high then drop us to the abyss of cravings for more. Our nutrition pendulum needs to go back to match the crisis of diabetes and obesity that we are in. If we could all lose weight and keep it off by portion size, it would be great. Unfortunately many will be unable to control this =mentally and due to the metabolic story going on inside our bodies with consumption of all those carbohydrates. We need more emphasis on including larger portions of protein and healthful fats-and snacks of same instead of (WW crackers/rice cakes or half a ww bagel) so we dont need to keep trying to trick ourselves by plate size to eat less.For real,the average obese individual who has more than 10-15 lbs to lose will not be deswayed from getting another serving if the cravings are still there. The american diabetic assoc is getting stricter on guidelines for carbs -it follows the overweight would be prudent to listen up. Parents have to help the overweight kids as well. Lets get to the cutting edge of this and help people out with the science behind it, so they at least have a fighting chance instead of telling “just eat less”
Good information to know. Thank you.
Cilla, with respect to your long battle with this eating disorder and the struggles you continuously encounter. Can you honestly say any type of medical attention has ever made a positive impact on you? I believe the medical profession does have great difficulty treating this complex disorder but I do not want to believe it is untreatable and one should simply give up. Please share your response.
A person can eat a smaller portion of food with self-control. Try to think that you deserve only the best of food, and only put the best kind in your mouth. Never allow yourself to become a human garbage(food) disposal. With that mind-set, I was successful in a vacation on a cruise ship where food was abundant. I sampled the best food but never over ate.
The comments are helpful! But remember ladies your man should not yell at you. And if you have small childern he should be helping. Check your marrige
enjoylife- i was thinking the same thing. Cilla, you just haven’t found the right therapist, you can be helped, we all can.