Friday, December 2, 2011

Setting the Table For Weight Loss

Which black circle is larger? 
I’ve mentioned my adoration for Brian Wansink before. For those of you who aren’t enthralled with food research he’s the author of Mindless Eating. Much of his research focuses on external cues that affect our eating. Everything from what we’re told about a food to the lighting in a room has an impact on what we ultimately eat. I was interviewed for a GMA segment, that should air today, about the Wansink's most recent research.  This study entitled “Plate Size and Color Suggestibility: The Delboeuf Illusion’s Bias on Serving and Eating Behavior” looked at food color, plate color and the amount of food we eat.

The main conclusion was that we eat less food when the plate and the food are contrasting colors. Conversely, we eat more when food and plate are more tonal. To GMA’s credit they conducted an informal study at a NYC restaurant to replicate or challenge the study results. Sure enough (and thankfully for the producers' sake) particpants plated significantly less (2 ounces less or almost 30%) pasta pomodoro on white plates than they did on red plates. While I’m not saying pasta pomodoro on white plates is the answer to your weight loss dreams. The plate/food color is something to think about.

So what is the explanation for the color and consumption connection? It’s related to an optical illusion with concentric circles (see top).  When “two circles of identical size have been placed near to each other and one is surrounded by an annulus; the surrounded circle then appears larger than the non-surrounded circle if the annulus is close, while appearing smaller than the non-surrounded circle if the annulus is distant." Thank you Wikipedia for that. For those of you, like me, who didn’t learn annulus when studying for the SATs, it means ring. The contrasting color in the study provides the close annulus and the net net is that the food on the plate will appear larger.

If you have white plates, you don’t need to do much other that eat the way practically all nutritionist’s suggest which is brightly colored food. Should you buy a second set of plates for when you have cauliflower or grilled chicken? Probably not. And I don’t foresee people going to restaurants and BYOP (bringing their own plate) as this crosses into eating idiocy. However, if you’re in the market for plates I would suggest white, small ones. And unlike food and plates, the researchers found table linens should be a similar color to your plate or the illusion is ruined. Coincidentally, my new plates from my favorite place in SF, Health Ceramics, are different colors and shapes. How versatile.
slightly concerned about oatmeal in the beige bowl
Do you pay attention to how external cues (sound, lighting, company) affects your eating? What type of plates do you own? What do you think of the circles above, does the one on the left appear larger?



19 comments:

  1. I have white plates, for other practical reasons (they go with everything!). But this is another good reason to have them! I also eat dinner on the salad plate, salad on the dinner plate, eat cereal out of the coffee cup, etc. Plates are just too damn big these days.

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  2. I am obsessed with Brian too!! I love all of his research and I truly believe we have a "mindless eating" epidemic. I saw this study the other day and started thinking about my white plates..but like you said, we always teach clients to make our plates colorful, and that's exactly what NIck and I do.
    I posted on the low FODMAP diet today, because my old post (which is my "most popular") needed updated, bad. I am still waiting for your interview questions. Are you still planning on writing about it?? I'd love to read what you have found on it so far.

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  3. Intriguing! I might have to check out that book. I try to eat on our smaller (white) plates when possible. However, I also own a set of black blates - remnants of college or shortly post - and have not noticed weather I eat more on the black plates or not. I'll have to do a wee study of my own at casa Morningstar.
    PS. Congrats on winning!

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  4. Justine you are a plate rebel.
    Gina- questions will come this weekend.

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  5. It's a good thing I own white plates... who knew!
    Mindless Eating is definitely on my reading list!

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  6. So interesting! I knew that I ate less when I used smaller plates. I never really thought about the colour of the plates, though...but it makes a lot of sense. I love white dishes and if I were in the market for all new stuff, that's the only thing that I would buy. I love your earth-toned dishes!

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  7. Yes Stephanie, the GMA study found 200 calories less with white dishes potentially 20 pounds in a year. WOW
    Lisa white and small too.

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  8. This is so interesting! I have a set of 2 smaller plates, and like to use them just for this purpose. I'm terrible, though -- I always go back for seconds, no matter what. My plates are dark and light blue, but I love the clean look of white plates.

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  9. Very interesting. I think it was Brian Wansink who did the blindfold study and people ate significantly less. I try to remind patients to be more in tune with what they are eating.
    So interesting how also things like the color and size of our plate affect how much we eat as well.
    Glad I own white plates! :)

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  10. I have two sets of dishes. One is glass. I bought ten dishes for ten dollars from KMart one year so we had dishes to put safely in the microwave. The other dishes are vintage Fire King milk glass Swirl pattern with the gold edges. The dishes are white and because they're vintage they are smaller in size than plates you'd buy today. I didn't do this on purpose. We used the set when I was a kid and my mother has already given it to me. In our camper, I use plain white Corelle. Again, that wasn't intentional. I think the white plates were just less expensive.

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  11. That's interesting! Thanks for sharing. I'll have to work in more color.

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  12. Caron, l wonder what effect glass would have on portion, I guess no contrast..And Kristen, yes we should all eat blindfolded (or in bright light) with no music and small plates though if blindfolded I guess plates don't matter, right?

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  13. I wanted new dishes for a Christmas gift this year, so this is a great reason to replace the whole set. Thanks!

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  14. What time were you on GMA? Sorry I missed it. Pls post a link to it if one's available.

    This is definitely very interesting to me.
    There are so many studies that are being done these days to figure out what motivates people to eat. So many of them are relaying that external factors are to blame. I haven't decided what my view is on that yet but I do find it very interesting nonetheless.

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  15. I love beautiful dishes....so my dishes have color and a lovely pattern. But I have made it a habit to eat off smaller dishes. It helps...intriguing study. I am sorry I missed you on GMA. I watch it every morning, but this morning I had to run out. :( Have a great weekend, Lauren. :)

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  16. I only eat off quarter plates now because I realized I was just eating way too much off our big white dinner plates. My husband thinks I'm nuts but there's nothing new there. :)

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  17. We have dark gray (my husband says blue, it's an on going debate) plates in our house. But I prefer to use these smallish plate-bowls that we have for my food. I find I can put the same amount in them but it looks like so much more - I think because it is piled higher than it would be on a plate :)

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  18. Interesting lots of commenters here onto the smaller plate/bowl concept. The same doesn't hold for utensils where bigger is actually better with regard to portion.

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  19. Mindless Eating has been on my To Read list too,, especially after I heard Vrian Wansink speak at FNCE. Great speaker and interesting research! OK, on to my plates.....actual dinner plates are cream and huge, so they rarely get used. Most times dinner is on my dark blue Pottery Barn salad plates and b-fast/lunch are on my smaller Anthropologie "fun animal print" plates. Love these plates! Now your post has me wanting to buy some new dishes....always love fun new dishes!

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