Want to eat less? Dine with a picky eater

A recent study by researchers at the Radboud University Nijmegen in Netherlands showed that women tend to pattern their eating habits to their companions.'

Seventy pairs of young women with an average age of 21 were observed to have copied the way their partners eat especially during the start of the meal.

Each pair had one member instructed by the research team to eat small, medium or large amounts of food (Partner A) . Her partner was given no instructions (Partner B).  During the course of the meal, researchers timed the amount of time it took Partner B to start eating in response to Partner A taking a bite. If it took her less than five seconds after her partner did so, then it was considered mi mimicry.

For the entire group, a total of 3,888 bites were recorded. Partner A took an average of 30 bites, while partner B took 41 bites.

Mimicry more evident at start of meal
Researchers saw that Partner B was more likely to copy Partner A than vice versa, and mimicry was more evident during the beginning of the meal. As the meal wore on, partner B seemed to copy less.

Dr. Roel Hermans, the lead investigator, concluded that women tend to mirror each other’s behavior. They tend to eat more when their companions ate more, and less when their partners ate less.

This can be classified in psychiatry as behavioral mimicry. It is not only observed during meal times but in most mannerisms and habits. Don't you sometimes feel the urge to scratch your head when you see your companion scratch his head. Or the classic example of wanting to yawn when someone else yawns?

Women do what’s acceptable
Dr. Hermans further explains that the mimicry was stronger during the earlier part of the meal because of women's tendency to do what is acceptable or what is appropriate. Women often go along with what is the norm or the "trend."

Based on the data presented in this pilot study, which was published in PLoS One (The Public Library of Science 1), it would appear that the key to consuming less is to eat with a picky eater and avoid dinner dates with people with big appetites.


Dr. Diana Sarmiento is a mother of three, part-time doctor, and a full-time wife and mother. The topics closest to her heart are women’s health, parenting, and any new information that she can get her hands on. Read more on her personal blog, Filipina M.D.