Sad Movies Make You Eat More
Eating guru Brian Wansink has concluded that people feeling sad eat more. That's hardly news to most of us - but would something as simple as a tear-jerker movie have the same effect?
Here's the test
they recruited 38 administrative assistants to watch either an upbeat, funny movie ("Sweet Home Alabama") or a sad, depressing one ("Love Story"). Throughout the viewings the participants were offered hot buttered, salty popcorn and seedless grapes. (abstract)
The people watching Love Story ate 36% more popcorn than the other group!
When nutritional information was provided -- those feeling sad curbed their consumption to the same level as those feeling happy.
This is a small test - but demonstrates how food is such an emotive substance.
Written By J. Foster
It's really interesting that you'd post this today. I just posted very early this morning that I gained 9 pounds after reading weight loss blogs with sad stories in the 2 weeks since I started my own diet blog.
I haven't needed to lose weight for years. And the conclusion I reached was that I was internalizing all the sad emotions I was reading about. And so I reached for food.
Nothing else seems to explain it.
I think this guy's on to something.
ReplyThis is exactly why I don't eat while watching movies. Sad movies don't necessarily make me eat, though. Maybe I'm just out of touch with my emotions or something.
Reply"Sad movies" make me too nauseated to eat.
ReplyThis is certainly true as far as I'm concerned. I just think of any emotional time in my life - work struggles, a break up, the death of a loved one...and that's when I would usually turn to a bag of chocolate covered almonds.
I think it's the recongition of this fact that let's us be able to anticipate and control it.
ReplyIt is for this reason that I do not watch the sad movies. More comedy - and mood's up. So see more entertaining films such as comedies :)
Reply