Mind over Milkshakes? The Power of Perception

Did you know that the way we think about food has an impact how we physiologically process and respond to that food?

I want to share two studies with you that illustrate this perfectly.

The first study, dubbed the 'mind over milkshake' experiment saw two groups consuming a 380-calorie milkshake under the pretense that it was either an "indulgent" shake (with double the calories) or a “sensible” shake (with half the calories). Ghrelin, a hormone that signals "hunger", was measured in all participants.

The results were fascinating and showed that the mindset of indulgence produced a dramatically steeper decline in ghrelin (thereby reducing hunger) after consuming the shake, whereas the mindset of sensibility produced a relatively flat ghrelin response (which far less of an impact on reducing hunger).

The second study was related to glucose metabolism and percieved sugar intake in foods labelled "high" and "low" in sugar that were actually matched for sugar content. When participants THOUGHT the sugar content was higher than it actually was in the food they were given, they got a different blood sugar response (more of a spike) compared to those who THOUGHT the sugar content was lower than it actually was (less of a spike).

The researchers stated that the "participants’ physiological response to food was consistent with what they believed they were consuming rather than the actual nutritional value of what they consumed".

Why is this? 

The proposed evolutionary advantage of this is that the expectation prepares the body to better cope with what the mind perceives is being delivered (i.e. a dedicant milkshake = less hunger afterwards).

Whether it be sugar, gluten, legumes, fat, grains, meat, dairy, even increasingly so fruits and veggies… there is an alarming amount of fear mongering and stress around food these days. Blanket negative statements around these foods completely ignores the context, details and nuances that acknowledge bio-individuality and complexity.

As these two studies show, mindset and perception matter a lot, and with nutrition, the devil is always in the detail.