Source: USA TODAY
Have you found that your favorite wine somehow tastes better after a toast?
If yes, you may be interested in what a recent study brings to the table. Little rituals around eating and drinking make them more enjoyable, according to a study published online last month in the journal Psychological Science.
Researchers from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and Harvard Business School in Boston conducted four experiments about rituals before eating. They defined a ritual as a systematic behavior that is irrelevant to the act that follows.
The experiments tested whether rituals influence the perception and consumption of chocolate (sweet), lemonade (tart) and baby carrots (healthy). For the experiments, the researchers devised simple rituals: breaking and unwrapping a chocolate bar, rapping knuckles on a desk before nibbling carrots, as well as stirring and pouring lemonade.
Participants who performed rituals reported that they savored the items more than those who did not engage in rituals. The study also found that performing a ritual enhanced consumption more than just watching a ritual.
The rituals piqued interest and boosted involvement in the drinking and eating experiences, the study concluded.
“There is a very long history of rituals and eating,” says Kathleen Vohs, the study’s lead author. “There is just something about bringing you into the moment.”
The researchers did not test saying grace before a meal. It is more complicated because other factors could be involved, says Vohs, a marketing professor at the Carlson School. For example, she says, mealtimes of families who say grace are generally associated with better outcomes such as healthier foods.
The power of rituals could have implications for other situations, Vohs says. Researchers are thinking about getting patients to perform rituals before surgery and then measuring their pain after the operation, she adds.
Joy Dubost, a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, says the unique study provides preliminary data. “It gives us direction as to where to go next,” adds Dubost, who was not involved in the study.
Future studies could be adapted to individuals to examine rituals they usually do, says Dubost, a registered dietitian in Washington, D.C. For example, the study looked at the breaking and unwrapping of a chocolate bar, she says. “I don’t normally do that, so I don’t know if it would affect me per se.”
Also, studies could look at whether rituals would affect how much a person eats in one sitting or day, she adds.
Vohs says she has wondered about her own ritual before sipping coffee. “Whenever I order an espresso, I take a sugar packet and shake it, open the packet and pour a teeny bit of sugar in, and then taste,” Vohs says. “It’s never enough sugar, so I then pour about half of the packet in. The thing is, this isn’t a functional ritual; I should just skip right to pouring in half the packet.”
She adds, “A lot of us do these little rituals and don’t even realize it.”
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