The answer to how much to eat doesn’t necessarily rely on how hungry you are, at least according to this research as the latest study shows that diet of eating companions plays a major role in influencing your food consumption.
Published in journal Social Influence, the study is a meta-analysis of 38 previous studies from countries including Canada and Australia and concludes that there is a social influence on the quantity of food a person consumes and holds the potential of regular food intake in people.
Led by Associate Professor Lenny Vartanian of the University of NSW’s school of psychology, the study says that a person will consume relatively less food if accompanied by someone who consumes lower quantity of food. On the other hand if he/she is accompanied by someone who is used to eating large amount of food, there is a possibility that the person may eat more than usual or have a feeling that it’s OK to consume more food.
“Social models provide a powerful influence on people’s food intake, with implications for their ability to appropriately regulate food intake”, concludes the study.
The study also concludes that at first, eating with a low-intake model can lead people to restrict their food intake; however, in some cases restriction (or reduced “overconsumption”) might be seen as healthy and desirable, in other cases it might exacerbate unhealthy restrictive eating patterns, particularly among individuals at risk for disordered eating.
Further, eating with a high-intake model can lead to overindulgence and excess energy intake. The potential for overindulgence in social situations might be heightened by the contemporary food environment, characterized by widespread availability of high-calorie foods and oversized portions.
Vartanian says that the research could give social cues to help people control their diet. Efforts to help people eat a healthy diet might potentially include using social models to promote the consumption of healthy foods, as well as helping people discern when a model’s food intake is an appropriate guide to behavior and when it is not, the researchers conclude.
