Well, its Thanksgiving today and that means an inevitable feast. But there are a few ways to avoid overeating. Personally, I will avoid it by living outside of the United States in Israel (though Israelis do eat the most Turkey per capita in the world). But if you find yourself at the dinner table tonight, there are a few economic tips to help you avoid taking that extra bite.
In a great Washington Post article by Ezra Klein, he asks MIT Professor Dan Ariely how to apply (behavioral) economic principles to the dinner table. His suggestions include:
1) “Move to chopsticks!” Or if you can’t get away with that, use smaller plates and utensils.
2) Place the food “far away” so people have to get up for that extra scoop of mashed potatoes.
3) Start with a soup course or other low calorie option.
4) Limit the number of courses. As Klein explains:
Variety stimulates appetite. As evidence, Ariely brings up a study conducted on mice. A male mouse and a female mouse will soon tire of mating with each other. But put new partners into the cage, and it turns out they weren’t tired at all. They were just bored. So, too, with food. “Imagine you only had one dish,” he says. “How much could you eat?”
5) Make the food yourself:
Economists believe that the obesity epidemic is largely attributable to the rise in food we don’t make for ourselves.
There will be fewer calories available if Grandma’s stuffing isn’t supplemented with bowls of chips and cheese.
6) And if all else fails, “wear a very tight shirt.”
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