Working Hard for Food

An interesting study was done in mice that indicated the harder the mice worked for food the more they enjoyed it. Using levers, the mice pressed the lever on time to get a tasty treat and 15 times to get a low calorie treat. The mice preferred the food that they had to work harder to get, even when the food was low calorie. These results even held true after time passed - the mice were again given a choice and they picked the food they worked harder to get. The researchers are hopeful that this will lead to some interesting studies in obese people - if you have to work harder for food will you value it more?

This research was interesting to me in terms of children who are picky eaters or overweight. Does proprioceptive work prior to eating influence a child's food preferences and choices? If a child is avoiding certain foods, if they have to exert more effort to get the food would they choose it? If I must exercise before I eat, will I make healthier food choices? Almost seems like reverse psychology...

Reference: Physorg.com Hard Work Improves the Taste of Food Study Shows. Retrieved from the web on 11/27/2010 at http://www.physorg.com/news/2010-11-hard-food.html

Background Noise and Food Preferences

A recent study published in Food Quality and Preference looked at the effects of background noise on food preference. Forty eight adult volunteers were exposed to a variety of background white noise via headphones and different types of food simultaneously. The results indicated that the louder the white noise the less the volunteers could taste different flavors such as salty or sweet. The sense of crunchiness of a food increased with the increase in white noise. In addition, the researchers found that if the subjects enjoyed the type of music they listened to while eating they enjoyed the food more.

Makes me wonder what effects white noise and music has on children who have sensory issues with food or picky eaters?

Read more about white noise at a previous blog post: white noise and attention span

Reference: Woods et. al. Effect of background noise on food perception Food Quality and Preference doi:10.1016/j.foodqual.2010.07.003