Keeping the kitchen tidy is a fundamental rule for any environment of this type, whether professional or home: it's important for hygiene, but it seems it can also help keep you in shape. Yet another crazy theory of the moment? No, science says so. Or rather, that's what a group of researchers from the Cornell Food and Brand Lab, a laboratory at Cornell University in the United States, have stated.
The researchers focused on examining the influence of a tidy environment on the desire to eat more than necessary, especially unhealthy foods. The starting point of the research is precisely the idea that keeping the kitchen tidy helps us eat less, because a messy environment contributes to increased stress, and stress pushes us to eat more, while a clean environment reduces temptation and thoughts related to food, influencing our eating habits. How did they prove their theory and what are the results of this research? Let's find out together.
The Research
To test their theory, the researchers selected 98 women and divided them into two different kitchen environments: one organized and quiet, with no interruptions, and the other a "chaotic" kitchen filled with disorganized tables, ruffled papers, and scattered dishes. To trigger a certain mindset in the participants, they were asked to solve tests or fill out fictitious questionnaires while they were served snacks. Those in the dirtier and messier environment ate an average of 53 kcal more per person than those in the other environments, preferring cookies over healthier snacks. This was in contrast to the volunteers in the tidier kitchen, who ate less and chose crackers and carrots instead of cookies.
"We found that the more cluttered and confusing an environment was, the more people ate," says co-author Brian Wansink, professor of marketing at the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management and director of the Food and Brand Lab. "It made them anxious, and when they became anxious, they ended up eating more cookies." Lead author Lenny Vartanian, a former postdoctoral associate at the Food and Brand Lab and currently associate professor of psychology at the University of New South Wales in Australia, adds: "Being in a chaotic environment and feeling out of control is detrimental to dieting. It seems to lead people to think, ‘Everything else is out of control, so why shouldn't I be?'"
Clutter Really Does Trigger Cravings
The research has fully demonstrated that the researchers' theory is correct: stress, combined with and exacerbated by being in an "out of control" environment, increases people's willingness to feel "out of control" themselves, and therefore to resist eating more than usual or consuming less healthy products. The study has shown that being in a chaotic environment and being stressed is negative for nutrition in general, not just for those on a diet. And be careful: even though the research was conducted on a group of women, it applies to everyone, including men.
To summarize the research findings, here's why order in the kitchen works:
- Reduces stress: A clean environment can help reduce stress, and stress is often linked to the desire to eat more.
- Reduces temptation: When your kitchen is messy, junk food is more likely to be in plain sight, making you more likely to consume it.
- Greater control: A rational organization of the kitchen, with supplies well arranged and containers in order, can make it easier to follow a diet or at least avoid snacking, by not having "temptations" right before your eyes.
Can't stand being a little messy? Don't worry, there's hope for those who struggle to keep their kitchens clean: researchers found that those who felt less stressed weren't as affected by a messy environment. Being able to reduce your stress and maintain a relaxed mindset, therefore, can help reduce the pressure to overeat, counteracting the influence of a chaotic space. Easier said than done, however, especially at certain times in life, so it's always good to try to find a way to minimize stress levels, but in practice, it's probably easier to keep our kitchens clean and tidy.
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