Spontaneous meal patterns of humans: influence of the presence of other people
Abstract
Social influences on eating were investigated by paying 63 adult humans to maintain 7-d diaries of everything they ingested, time, subjective hunger, and number of people present. Meals eaten with others contained more carbohydrate, fat, protein, and total calories; had smaller deprivation ratios; and had larger satiety ratios than meals eaten alone. The number of people present was positively correlated with meal size even when meals eaten alone were excluded. Adding the number of people present as a factor in a multiple-regression prediction of meal size more than doubled the variance accounted for, without altering the influence of other predictors, suggesting that social factors are associated independently with an increase in meal size. Meal size was positively correlated with the postmeal interval for meals eaten alone but not for meals eaten with other people. This suggests that social factors increase amounts eaten and disrupt postprandial regulation.
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Self-citation
- Authors
- de Castro, J. M., & de Castro, E. S.
- Venue
- The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1989-08
- Volume
- 50
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 237-247
- ISSN
- 0002-9165 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1943245896
- Cited by
- 279
- References
- 20
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 8
- FWCI
- 8.69
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Nutrition, Health and Food Behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Regulation of Appetite and Obesity
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Keywords
- social influences on eating, meal size, eating with others, meal patterns, subjective hunger, satiety, dietary intake, macronutrient intake, food diary
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Feeding Behavior, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Social Behavior
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