Rituals Before Eating May Enhance Perceived Taste of Food

Could prayers, wishes or songs enhance the flavor of your meal? Probably not, but your mind might think so, according to a recent study.

For example, blowing out the birthday candles on a cake might actually make it taste sweeter with a song before.

Researchers from Minnesota University believe that many unusual customs can help to actually sweeten the taste of a good dessert or other food due to the beliefs surrounding them.

Researchers gave participants a piece of chocolate and told them to break it in half without unwrapping it first, and then to eat one half before unwrapping the other and eating that half, too.

The study showed that those that performed the ritual rated the chocolate more highly, savoured it more and were willing to pay for it more than a separate group who were allowed to eat it however they wanted.

A second experiment only reinforced the previous findings. Using carrots, the anticipation of consuming the vegetable following a ritual improved it's taste, according to participants. The longer people waited to eat the food, the more they enjoyed it.

Final experiments also showed that our involvement in the food we eat helps bring out better flavor and possible happiness when consuming. For example, researchers showed someone else methodically mixing lemonade but found that it did not improve the taste for participants. Personal involvement is key, according to researchers.

This idea has prompted the possibilities for other studies, according to Kathleen Vohs, the lead study author.

"We are thinking of getting patients to perform rituals before a surgery and then measuring their pain postoperatively and how fast they heal."

What do you think?

More information regarding the study can be found in the Psychological Science journal.