You have surely heard of the famous study according to which eating on a small plate would encourage our brain to eat less. In other words, the size of our plate would determine the amount of food we consume. A few months later, a new study turned to the size of the table on which we eat.
Published in a famous American newspaper, the study was carried out by the Cornell Food &Brand Lab , a famous institute specializing in food-related research. To carry out the experiment, a team of scientists cut pizzas into eight slices and then other pizzas into sixteen slices. Then they placed small portions on a small table as well as on a large table and then normal portions also on a small as well as a large table.
219 lucky kids sat around the tables and were invited to eat as many portions as they wanted. After eating, everyone had to say how many portions they ate and this is where it gets interesting. Of all the people who had small slices of pizza in front of them, those seated at a small table ate twice as much as those seated at a large table.
The scientists understood that the size of the table distracts the participants by creating an optical effect. Thanks to the large size of the table, the participants believed that the small slices of pizza were bigger than reality. After the experiment, study leader Brennan Davis said, "To eat less, serve food in small portions on large tables “.
