Researchers Claim That Biting Into Whole Foods Can Lead To Bad Behavior In Kids
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The next time you are chided for bad behavior, blame it on the whole apple, pear or pretty much any uncut food that your parents packed in your lunch box. That's because biting into anything that requires the use of the front teeth, is likely to cause rowdy behavior in kids! At least that's the conclusion some researchers from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, have reached, after observing the behavior of 12 elementary school students at a summer camp.
The study whose results were published last month in the scientific journal, Eating Behavior, was led by Brian Wansink, Professor and Director of the Cornell Food and Brand Lab. The researchers began by dividing the 6-10 year-olds into two groups.
On the first day, one group was given chicken on the bone - a food that they had to lift and bite into with their front teeth. The other was provided with the same chicken, except it was cut into dainty, bite-size pieces so that the only way to consume it, was with a fork. The following day, the foods were switched, so that the first group received the small pieces and cutlery, while the second, enjoyed the poultry on the bone. Each day, the camp counselors also gave the kids strict instructions to remain within a circle with a 9-foot radius.
The researchers diligently videotaped both the meal sessions and then asked behavioral experts, as well as, the camp counselors who were supervising the kids, to evaluate what ensued. Both agreed that the kids that were asked to bite the foods were twice as likely to exhibit aggressive behavior and disobey the adults, than those that were focused on eating their food with cutlery. If that isn't bad enough, the former group was also more likely to leave their assigned circle and even, stand and jump on the picnic tables!
This has led Mr. Wansink and his team to conclude that for some reason, kids that bite into their food are more likely to exhibit bad behavior than those forced to eat with cutlery. Hence, he advices parents that wish to enjoy a peaceful meal to cut up any foods they serve to their kids!
Resource: foodpsychology.cornell.edu, sciencedaily.com
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355 Comments
mico14about 3 yearsI have ADHD that's to blame for my bad behavior
wolfy_blueover 3 yearsThis is hard to believe. I eat non cut food 99.9 % of the time. And I'm not like crazy bad behavior.
gold3nglareover 3 yearscan't blame em. Healthy food sometimes tastes like dirt. I would get annoyed too
bscover 3 yearsHuh. This is very interesting!
bozysoty-160215184088almost 4 yearsI disagree with the scientist because you never know if the kids act that way.
blue_fox_740almost 4 yearsthat can't be true but if it is how do we eat sandwiches?
sproutsugoiabout 2 yearsBc they're literally made with all ingredients that were cut from something. .-.
- hiover 5 yearsar-ar-are y-y-you s-s-sure a-a-about t-t-that???
- kcufover 5 yearsi dont think it is true because i always eat with my hands and it dodent make me crazy
- bla blaover 5 yearswow not true
- kaileyover 5 yearsalright, I'm a kid myself, I think this information is not a reliable source. in some ways, it can be yes. but if you come back into reality, I really think eating foods, utensil or not wouldn't affect any sort of behavior, just remember the fork was invented to make eating easier and make you look more civilized. I highly doubt due to previous studies about utensils and the history behind them would make a difference to kids behavior today.