What's good about the holiday season is you get to enjoy good conversation with your family and loved ones over scrumptious and extra-special buffet of dishes. However, alongside the memorable and delightful moments is the possibility of gaining the holiday weight, or to translate it in much simpler terms: gaining a few extra pounds.
Although the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics' research claims that on average, Americans only gain a single pound during the holiday season, it is still undeniable that many are prone to gaining a tad more. Here are three tested and proven ways for you to beat the possibility of putting on more weight throughout this season.
3. The buffet arrangement
The thing about this season is that there is a big chance that you will be facing number of buffets here and there. But don't be tricked, a good way to minimize or suppress your appetite is to start at the healthy end of the table. This is highly affected by how the foods are arranged on the buffet table.
According to a recent study where a setup was made such that the fruits are displayed as the first items in the buffet table, about 86 percent of people took time to get some fruits. In the other hand, when the fruits are paced at the end of the table, only 54 percent took their time to get fruits for their plates. "Each food taken may partly determine what other foods a person selects. In this way, the first food a person selects triggers what they take next," behavioral economist Professor Brian Wansink and Andrew Hanks, authors of the study said. The study maintains that it's always best to start at the end of the buffet table where the healthier foods are situated so that once you begin by the time you reach the not-so-healthy end, you're probably adequately full before you know it.
2. Use red plates
Another trick that is most useful for this holiday season is the use of red plates. Believe it or not this is a psychologically proven theory given that when the human brain recognizes something red, it sends your body the signal to stop. A study published in the journal 'Appetite,' reveals that red plates affect your consumption.
The study allowed 109 individuals to freely munch on pretzels served in white, blue, and red plates while answering some questionnaires. Later on, it was found out that those who were given pretzels served on red plates ate significantly less than those who were provided with pretzels served on white and blue plates. However, it was not noted how the people who were served with food on white plates scored compared with those who got their pretzels on blue plates. But the authors concluded that the red color elicited a certain apprehension towards actually touching or finishing their food, adding that this is probably related socially and culturally related habits such as stopping upon seeing a red traffic light.
1. Modify your wine glasses
Wine is very abundant during the holiday season, but you don't actually want to drink much too much. In another study, it was discovered that the shape of wine glass also affects your appetite to overdrink or overeat. Authors of the study claimed that using tall, narrow wine glasses has a significant effect on the tendency of humans to pour more wine into their glasses.
Additionally, the authors also noted that the manner of pouring wine into the glass also has a certain effect to human appetite. The study stated that holding the glass while pouring the wine also has a direct effect on the amount you drink. It maintained that the best way to rid of your binging tendencies is to pour the wine while it is on top of a table instead.
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