For those who want to lose weight, the surrounding environment also has its importance. According to researchers at Cornell University in New York, bingeing is often also influenced by factors external to the real appetite.
The proof comes from the studio Food and Brand Lab which suggests some useful “tricks” to keep hunger at bay. First of all, the choice of foods to buy: abolished the packs family size, “better those of small size and, in the case of biscuits, those in which the product is already” portioned “- warns Lucia Bacciottini, professor of nutrition and nutraceuticals at the University of Florence -.
“Nobody would eat 30 apples, but 30 biscuits yes: we have to go back to buying whole foods and not the nutrient concentrates that supermarkets abound”, explains the specialist, inviting us to indulge in “a single greedy food per cart”.
Read also: Children: 5 tricks to get them to eat vegetables
Also watch out for portions, to be served in contained quantities. As it proved Brian Wansink, director of Food and Brand Lab, always having an inviting food at your disposal, such as succulent chips, can favor the accumulation of over 3.6 kilos in a year. Ditto for breakfast cereals which, although they are offered in more than healthy packages, having them under your eyes every morning can lead you to take advantage of excessive quantities.
How to increase the consumption of vegetables? The advice is to place the tray that contains them in the center of the table: do not be forced to get up continuously to serve yourself, it increases the portions by 19%. With a recommendation: put away excess cooked food as soon as possible, so as not to fall into temptation.
Next, pay attention to the size of the crockery, preferring small plates and bowls that help eat a little less. Also important is the color: never serve pasta with sauce on a red plate. “In one of our experiments, choosing a dish the same color as the food led to an increase in calories of 18%,” said Wansink, recalling that “when you eat ‘white’ and caloric sources of starch, such as pasta, rice and potatoes, better focus on dark and contrasting dishes “.