Hide that chocolate!

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

A study shows that the visibility of food affects the amount people consume.
If you're sitting watching TV or at a desk working, it's tempting to nibble. But how does the proximity and visibility of food affect the amount you consume? Researchers at Cornell University carried out a simple little study to find out.

They worked with 40 secretaries and put a dish of chocolates either on their desk or a distance of two meters away. They varied it more by using clear or opaque covered bowls to see what impact visibility has. The participants ate an average of 2.2 more chocolates when they were visible (in a clear dish) and 1.8 more when they were on their desk as opposed to at a distance.

An important factor in weight control is how accurate our estimates of food consumption are. When chocolate was on the desk, there was a tendency to overestimate - if two meters away, there was the opposite tendency. The message here is clear - if you want to control snacking, keep temptation hidden away.

Source
International Journal of Obesity May 2006