Public health campaigns can use vanity to improve fruit and vegetable consumption, since experiments show carotenoid phytonutrients improve the physical attractiveness of African, Asian, and Caucasian faces.
Eating Better to Look Better
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Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
“Inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption” may kill millions around the globe every year, so the public health community is not beyond “appealing to vanity”— “health is intimately linked to attractiveness.”
How do you tell if someone’s healthy? You look for that golden glow that comes from the carotenoids in fruits and vegetables, found to increase the attractiveness of African, Asian, and Caucasian faces. These are kind of before-and-after shots, with more and more fruits and vegetables as you go left to right. Most think the greater fruit and veggie group on the right appears healthier and more attractive.
College students going from three servings a day to the recommended minimum of nine servings a day for just six weeks significantly improved skin color, and it’s “possible that even smaller dietary changes” could help as well. And, the worse we now eat, the more attractive we may become!
Public health advocates hope this research, suggesting healthy eating may “affect mate choice” and “sexual selection” provides a powerful message for promoting healthy eating, towards boosting fruit and veggie intake up to 13 servings a day.
And, while that rosy glow, associated with cardiovascular health in the face and lips, can also increase one’s appearance of healthfulness and attractiveness, the color red can also reduce junk food intake. People drink less soda from cups with red stickers than from cups with blue stickers, and eat less from red plates than from blue or white plates. How crazy is that? Check it out. They speculate it’s because our brains subconsciously are thinking “red traffic lights, stop-signs, red alert”—what are you putting in your poor body!?!
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- J. E. Stewart, L. P. Newman, R. S. J. Keast. Oral sensitivity to oleic acid is associated with fat intake and body mass index. Clin Nutr 2011 30(6):838 - 844.
- M. K. Spill, L. L. Birch, L. S. Roe, B. J. Rolls. Hiding vegetables to reduce energy density: An effective strategy to increase children's vegetable intake and reduce energy intake. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2011 94(3):735 - 741.
- A. D. Blatt, L. S. Roe, B. J. Rolls. Hidden vegetables: An effective strategy to reduce energy intake and increase vegetable intake in adults. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2011 93(4):756 - 763.
- R. D. Whitehead, D. Re, D. Xiao, G. Ozakinci, D. I. Perrett. You are what you eat: Within-subject increases in fruit and vegetable consumption confer beneficial skin-color changes. PLoS ONE 2012 7(3):e32988.
- I. D. Stephen, V. Coetzee, M. L. Smith, D. I. Perrett. Skin blood perfusion and oxygenation colour affect perceived human health. PLoS ONE 2009 4(4):e5083.
- O. Genschow, L. Reutner, M. Wänke. The color red reduces snack food and soft drink intake. Appetite 2012 58(2):699 - 702.
- J. E. Stewart, R. S. J. Keast. Recent fat intake modulates fat taste sensitivity in lean and overweight subjects. Int J Obes (Lond) 2012 36(6):834 - 842.
- R. M. Tucker, R. D. Mattes. Are free fatty acids effective taste stimuli in humans? Presented at the symposium
- J. S. Litt, M.-J. Soobader, M. S. Turbin, J. W. Hale, M. Buchenau, J. A. Marshall. The influence of social involvement, neighborhood aesthetics, and community garden participation on fruit and vegetable consumption. Am J Public Health 2011 101(8):1466 - 1473.
- R. D. Whitehead, G. Ozakinci, I. D. Stephen, D. I. Perrett. Appealing to vanity: Could potential appearance improvement motivate fruit and vegetable consumption? Am J Public Health 2012 102(2):207 - 211.
- R. D. Whitehead, V. Coetzee, G. Ozakinci, D. I. Perrett. Cross-cultural effects of fruit and vegetable consumption on skin color. Am J Public Health 2012 102(2):212 - 213.
- Ian D. Stephena, Vinet Coetzee, David I. Perrett. Carotenoid and melanin pigment coloration affect perceived human health. Evolution and Human Behavior 2011 32(NA):216 - 227.
- I. D. Stephen, A. M. McKeegan. Lip colour affects perceived sex typicality and attractiveness of human faces. Perception 2010 39(8):1104 - 1110.
- C. A. Blais, R. M. Pangborn, N. O. Borhani, M. F. Ferrell, R. J. Prineas, B. Laing. Effect of dietary sodium restriction on taste responses to sodium chloride: A longitudinal study. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 1986 44(2):232 - 243.
- F. G. Grieve, M. W. V. Weg. Desire to eat high- and low-fat foods following a low-fat dietary intervention. J Nutr Educ Behav 2003 35(2):98 - 102.
- Brian Wansink, Koert van Ittersum, James E. Painter. How descriptive food names bias sensory perceptions in restaurants. Food Quality and Preference 2005 16(NA):393 - 400.
- Brian Wansink. Changing Eating Habits on the Home Front: Lost Lessons from World War II Research . Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 2002 21(1):90 - 99.
- BFUAN WANSINK, SE-BUM PARK. SENSORY SUGGESTIVENESS AND LABELING: DO SOY LABELS BIAS TASTE? . Journal of Sensory Studies 2002 17(NA):483 - 491.
Images thanks to fadeevbiz via flickr
Below is an approximation of this video’s audio content. To see any graphs, charts, graphics, images, and quotes to which Dr. Greger may be referring, watch the above video.
“Inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption” may kill millions around the globe every year, so the public health community is not beyond “appealing to vanity”— “health is intimately linked to attractiveness.”
How do you tell if someone’s healthy? You look for that golden glow that comes from the carotenoids in fruits and vegetables, found to increase the attractiveness of African, Asian, and Caucasian faces. These are kind of before-and-after shots, with more and more fruits and vegetables as you go left to right. Most think the greater fruit and veggie group on the right appears healthier and more attractive.
College students going from three servings a day to the recommended minimum of nine servings a day for just six weeks significantly improved skin color, and it’s “possible that even smaller dietary changes” could help as well. And, the worse we now eat, the more attractive we may become!
Public health advocates hope this research, suggesting healthy eating may “affect mate choice” and “sexual selection” provides a powerful message for promoting healthy eating, towards boosting fruit and veggie intake up to 13 servings a day.
And, while that rosy glow, associated with cardiovascular health in the face and lips, can also increase one’s appearance of healthfulness and attractiveness, the color red can also reduce junk food intake. People drink less soda from cups with red stickers than from cups with blue stickers, and eat less from red plates than from blue or white plates. How crazy is that? Check it out. They speculate it’s because our brains subconsciously are thinking “red traffic lights, stop-signs, red alert”—what are you putting in your poor body!?!
Please consider volunteering to help out on the site.
- J. E. Stewart, L. P. Newman, R. S. J. Keast. Oral sensitivity to oleic acid is associated with fat intake and body mass index. Clin Nutr 2011 30(6):838 - 844.
- M. K. Spill, L. L. Birch, L. S. Roe, B. J. Rolls. Hiding vegetables to reduce energy density: An effective strategy to increase children's vegetable intake and reduce energy intake. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2011 94(3):735 - 741.
- A. D. Blatt, L. S. Roe, B. J. Rolls. Hidden vegetables: An effective strategy to reduce energy intake and increase vegetable intake in adults. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2011 93(4):756 - 763.
- R. D. Whitehead, D. Re, D. Xiao, G. Ozakinci, D. I. Perrett. You are what you eat: Within-subject increases in fruit and vegetable consumption confer beneficial skin-color changes. PLoS ONE 2012 7(3):e32988.
- I. D. Stephen, V. Coetzee, M. L. Smith, D. I. Perrett. Skin blood perfusion and oxygenation colour affect perceived human health. PLoS ONE 2009 4(4):e5083.
- O. Genschow, L. Reutner, M. Wänke. The color red reduces snack food and soft drink intake. Appetite 2012 58(2):699 - 702.
- J. E. Stewart, R. S. J. Keast. Recent fat intake modulates fat taste sensitivity in lean and overweight subjects. Int J Obes (Lond) 2012 36(6):834 - 842.
- R. M. Tucker, R. D. Mattes. Are free fatty acids effective taste stimuli in humans? Presented at the symposium
- J. S. Litt, M.-J. Soobader, M. S. Turbin, J. W. Hale, M. Buchenau, J. A. Marshall. The influence of social involvement, neighborhood aesthetics, and community garden participation on fruit and vegetable consumption. Am J Public Health 2011 101(8):1466 - 1473.
- R. D. Whitehead, G. Ozakinci, I. D. Stephen, D. I. Perrett. Appealing to vanity: Could potential appearance improvement motivate fruit and vegetable consumption? Am J Public Health 2012 102(2):207 - 211.
- R. D. Whitehead, V. Coetzee, G. Ozakinci, D. I. Perrett. Cross-cultural effects of fruit and vegetable consumption on skin color. Am J Public Health 2012 102(2):212 - 213.
- Ian D. Stephena, Vinet Coetzee, David I. Perrett. Carotenoid and melanin pigment coloration affect perceived human health. Evolution and Human Behavior 2011 32(NA):216 - 227.
- I. D. Stephen, A. M. McKeegan. Lip colour affects perceived sex typicality and attractiveness of human faces. Perception 2010 39(8):1104 - 1110.
- C. A. Blais, R. M. Pangborn, N. O. Borhani, M. F. Ferrell, R. J. Prineas, B. Laing. Effect of dietary sodium restriction on taste responses to sodium chloride: A longitudinal study. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 1986 44(2):232 - 243.
- F. G. Grieve, M. W. V. Weg. Desire to eat high- and low-fat foods following a low-fat dietary intervention. J Nutr Educ Behav 2003 35(2):98 - 102.
- Brian Wansink, Koert van Ittersum, James E. Painter. How descriptive food names bias sensory perceptions in restaurants. Food Quality and Preference 2005 16(NA):393 - 400.
- Brian Wansink. Changing Eating Habits on the Home Front: Lost Lessons from World War II Research . Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 2002 21(1):90 - 99.
- BFUAN WANSINK, SE-BUM PARK. SENSORY SUGGESTIVENESS AND LABELING: DO SOY LABELS BIAS TASTE? . Journal of Sensory Studies 2002 17(NA):483 - 491.
Images thanks to fadeevbiz via flickr
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Title
Eating Better to Look Better
LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Content URLDoctor's Note
I previously covered this topic in Golden Glow and Rosy Glow, although I’m so glad we now have data from people of color as well. Can’t we just swallow supplements instead of salads? See Produce, not Pills, to Increase Physical Attractiveness.
I’m certainly not above appealing to vanity. Whatever it takes to get people healthy. Hence, videos like:
- Wart Cancer Viruses in Food
- Preventing Wrinkles with Diet
- Plant-Based Diets: Oral Health
- Beauty is More than Skin Deep
- Can Cellulite be Treated with Diet?
- The Acne-Promoting Effects of Milk
50 Shades of Greens describes a similar tack to promote more plant-based eating by appealing to sexual function and performance.
For further context, check out my associated blog post, Improving Attractiveness in Six Weeks.
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