My kids stared at a glass of bright green, frothy liquid I whipped up for their snack. Before they could turn up their nose and object, I enthusiastically announced, “Check it out -- Shrek Shakes!”
Whatever hesitation they initially felt vanished with those two magic words – Shrek and shake. They happily slurped down and asked for seconds of the vitamin-packed banana and yogurt concoction that gets its bold color from several heaping cups of fresh, raw spinach.
My husband, salesman that he is, mastered marketing food to the kids much sooner than I did. They cheer for Daddy’s World Famous Beans (a.k.a Van de Camp’s with extra mustard and brown sugar). And, in side-by-side taste tests, Daddy’s World Famous Pancakes (a.k.a. Krusteez powdered mix) regularly outperformed my genuinely homemade buttermilk pancakes. That is, until I launched Mommy’s World Famous Homemade Pancakes.
Despite the pathetic lack of originality of these names, our kids remain convinced that the daily hash we sling under the “world famous” banner lives up to its billing. (Maybe they aren’t that bright.)
Their gullibility is funny, until you consider how well the same tricks work on us. Restaurants promote Grandma’s cottage meatloaf, juicy Angus thick burgers, and hand-scooped, triple-thick milk shakes. And the tempting names move product.
Food psychologist Brian Wansink has spent his career researching the psychology of eating and has identified dozens of hidden persuaders, like marketing, that influence our food choices and often cause us to overeat.
For example, we will eat more out of large bowls and large plates, in the company of friends, when faced with great variety (buffets, Thanksgiving dinner), when we’re distracted (by books, television or a movies), and when we believe the food is suppose to be good (i.e. the juicy Angus thick burger).
His book, “Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think,” is filled with results from his studies and outlines nine strategies for “re-engineering” our food choices and influencers. The book is both fascinating and practical.
Rather than restrictive diets calling for unsustainable changes that usually leave us face first in a gallon of ice cream, he argues for “stealth health.” These are small, positive changes that we can incorporate subtly into our lifestyles to become more healthy long term.
Some of his suggestions include:
1. See all you can eat: Plate your meals and snacks. Minimize seconds. Never eat out of a large bag or box and leave extra food on the stove not the table.
2. Make overeating a hassle not a habit. Put tempting foods in an inconvenient place. Store cookies in the freezer rather than a cookie jar. Place candy dishes across the room not beside the couch.
3. Be a good gatekeeper. If there’s no soda or Pop-Tarts in the house it’s hard to eat them.
4. Use the 50/50 rule: Reduce the size of your plate and fill half of it at every meal with fruits and vegetables.
Bookstores are filled with diet books, many of them best sellers, yet 63 percent of Americans are overweight. The truth is eating is fun and dieting stinks.
Wansink’s approach seems more realistic. Understand the influencers behind our eating habits and use them to our benefit. Rather than mindlessly gaining weight we can mindlessly lose or maintain our weight for a healthier lifestyle.
Time to make some cool, refreshing Shrek shakes.
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