Buzz
Rituals can provide a sense of control over our lives, making us feel more at ease in situations that would typically make us uncomfortable. Researchers have recently discovered that a quirky, seemingly pointless food ritual may help us consume fewer calories.
This ritual, which was featured in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (behind a paywall) and detailed here, involves performing three specific actions every time you eat. Here are the steps as outlined in the study for participants:
First, cut your food into pieces before eating.
Second, arrange the pieces symmetrically on your plate, making sure the right side mirrors the left side perfectly.
Lastly, press your utensil against the top of your food three times.
In the study, participants—undergraduate women trying to lose weight, recruited at a campus gym—consumed fewer calories each day if they followed the ritual. The control group, on the other hand, was simply asked to eat mindfully without additional instructions.
The researchers explain that none of the steps are particularly significant; they intentionally made the ritual arbitrary, simple, and repeatable. It was also strict: "To participate in the study, you must perform all three steps of the ritual each time you eat."
How It Feels to Follow This Ritual
I tried this ritual for a few meals, and it felt absurd. For lunch yesterday, I had leftover Thai curry with rice. I cut some of the larger pieces of chicken with my fork, then did my best to arrange the meal symmetrically. I got the impression that the ritual might not work as well with all foods; how would you do it with soup? (Though, honestly, it wasn’t nearly as ridiculous as those mindful eating exercises where you rub an orange against your lips.)
For dinner, I had pizza. I cut it, arranged it, and pressed my eating utensil (well, my fingers) on the food three times. The next morning, I debated whether to have toast or oatmeal, then decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. I wasn’t the only one who grew bored with the ritual: the researchers point out that "by the end of the study, participants said they found the ritual unhelpful and were unlikely to continue it."
However, I did appreciate that adding a small ritual before each meal made me pay a bit more attention to what I was eating. While overly strict rituals can be a sign of eating disorders, there’s definitely space for healthy rituals in our lives. For example, perhaps you enjoy making your coffee the same way each morning. We also engage in food rituals during social occasions: singing before serving birthday cake or clinking glasses in a toast before drinking.
Give this ritual a try if you're curious to see if it works for you. Or even better, create your own version.
