What colors affect appetite?

In the modern world, the attitude to eating is rather ambiguous. Residents of developed countries, not experiencing a shortage of dishes and products on their tables and on store shelves, often find themselves captive to their raging appetite. Advertising, colorful packaging and display cases cause a desire to have a bite or even eat tightly more often than the body requires. One of the stimulants of appetite in humans is color. The article will talk about which shades can significantly awaken a feeling of hunger, and which, on the contrary, dull the desire to eat.

Visiting cafes and restaurants, buying food in shops or eating fast food, you will probably notice how varied the decoration of the interiors of establishments, packaging and counters is. We are so used to it that we do not attach much importance to this. But often it is the impact of a certain color scheme that is a tool to stimulate the buyer.

First, it’s worth clarifying the concepts of hunger and appetite. The first, that is, hunger, has a physiological nature. It occurs after the brain receives signals from receptors. Chemoreceptors are triggered at a time when the level of glucose in the blood decreases. After this, the organs of the gastrointestinal tract and digestive glands are connected. In this case, a person may feel weakness, small cramps in the abdomen or stomach. During food intake and gradual satiation, hunger subsides, and a signal is sent to the brain that the glucose level has been restored.

Appetite is more associated with psychological factors. It can occur when the human body is not exhausted at all.Emotion, smells, and surroundings are capable of launching an appetite and a psychological desire to please oneself delicious. Just from physiologically unjustified desire to eat and suffer many modern residents of megacities. And color can either stimulate or reduce the desire to have a bite or eat a full meal.

So, let's start with those shades that can enhance our desire to eat. The bright colors of the warm spectrum make the food attractive. In addition, they themselves attract attention. Fast food stalls are often painted red, yellow or orange and shop windows with pastries or pastries are highlighted. Also, packages with various products often have warm colors.

• Red color is the most powerful appetite stimulant. It excites the nervous system, is able to slightly increase blood pressure and accelerate metabolic processes. However, too bright red color can affect the appetite negatively, since it in large quantities leads to excessive irritation of the psyche. And in this state, a person does not have time to eat, he often experiences anxiety or even unconscious panic. Therefore, in the interiors of cafes and restaurants, muted red or its milder shades are most often used. But the bright red most often decorates the windows of the bistro and the stalls with fast food. In this case, the outlet attracts the attention of the buyer, but he himself does not stay there for a long time.
• Orange color is able to quickly cheer up. It causes positive emotions and joy. This warm shade is softer, so it does not act overexcitation. Family cafes and dining rooms are often decorated in this color. In a comfortable environment, people are ready to stay long enough without experiencing discomfort, while the color arouses interest in food.
• Almost on a par with orange in its ability to stimulate appetite is yellow color. This is a warm shade that is associated with summer, sun, sand. Yellow fills with joy, and a happy and cheerful person always has a good appetite. Healthy fruits and vegetables often have orange or yellow color: oranges, apples, carrots, pumpkin, apricots and others. Therefore, the method of exposure to color can be used for young children who refuse vegetables and fruits. It is enough to make a composition of these bright products on a plate, and they will become much more attractive for the baby.
• Shades of green are the most natural. They are associated with freshness. Unlike the previous three colors, green does not cause excitement, but, on the contrary, calms the nervous system. Therefore, it can be used in cases where it is not required to cause excessive interest in food, but just a comfortable environment for a quiet meal is needed. In this condition, a person much better assesses the degree of satiety and, most likely, will not overeat.

We talked about those shades that enhance and stimulate the desire to eat. Now let's move on to those colors that have the opposite effect on the psyche.

Colors can be used for another purpose, namely, to suppress a short-term desire to eat once again. Of course, such a property of some shades is not at all beneficial for manufacturers, and they are unlikely to actively use them in catering establishments or in the design of goods wrappers. But knowing what shades reduce the desire to eat, you can help yourself control food intake at home, creating the appropriate atmosphere in the dining room.

Often the problem of excess weight becomes very serious for a modern person. For many years, they have been struggling unsuccessfully with running kilograms. If the increase in body weight is not a consequence of any physiological disease, alternative psychological techniques may come to the aid of those who want to lose weight and control their figure.

So, the colors and shades that discourage the desire to eat.

• The most powerful inhibitory effect blue and purple. These cool colors slow down the metabolic processes in the body. They also have a strong calming effect. There are very few natural products that have this color, so these shades are not associated with something edible.
• Grey the color is neither exciting nor soothing. The interior decorated with this color is perceived as faceless and unattractive, you do not want to linger in it. Usually, business buildings, meeting rooms and offices are decorated in metallic and gray tones. This is a fairly strict color, not causing pleasant emotions, not conducive to communication.
• Brown has an unappetizing and inedible nature. Of course, they often get coffee shops, but in this case he gives an association only for two products: coffee and chocolate. In general, he is more likely to suppress appetite. At least for a long time you will definitely not want to eat food in the presence of a large amount of brown around. Therefore, this shade can be quite successfully applied to reduce the desire to once again have a bite.
• Completes the rating of "unappetizing" colors the black. Black is not conducive to fun, and for many it is completely associated with mourning.

By analogy with cafes and shops, you can create that color atmosphere in your kitchen that will help regulate your appetite.

While eating, we also perceive the appearance of cutlery, plates, saucers and cups. By choosing the color of the dishes correctly, you can help yourself to influence your appetite in the right direction. So, plates of warm shades will help stimulate it. They are best used for first courses, as well as when feeding babies who are picky in food and eat poorly. Products on red, yellow and orange saucers will be seen in a warm spectrum and will become more attractive.

White color is almost neutral in terms of influence on the desire to eat. However, a very large number of table porcelain tableware has this particular color. The fact is that on such a plate the food becomes more noticeable, and attention is focused on it. Therefore, in the case of white or very light dishes, the color of the products should be manipulated. For example, on white plates stew from bright vegetables, fresh salads, assorted fruits look advantageous and appetizing.

Those who, on the contrary, seek to reduce the amount of food consumed, can be advised to use dishes of a cold spectrum: blue, purple, blue. Black plates will also “steal” your desire for satiety.

Above, the principle of the action of flowers was briefly described on examples of the interiors of cafes and store shelves. To design a home dining room or kitchen, you can follow approximately the same rules.

• A cozy and calm atmosphere will create pale orange and yellow shades.
• It is not too pleasant to take food surrounded by a rich and bright red color, as it quickly overexcites.Therefore, having lunch or dinner with your family can simply become uncomfortable. But the muted shades of red will bring romantic notes and will have a stimulating effect on the digestive system.
• Cold colors suppress interest in food. They can be used if you have a need for weight control and you are struggling with an excessive desire to eat more.
• It will also help curb the appetite in the kitchen in metallic and gray.
• A similar action can be achieved by using a large amount of black in the dining room interior. But do not forget about its overwhelming influence. If you overdo it, then the kitchen will turn into a very gloomy and uncomfortable room.

If you do not plan to change the color scheme of the entire dining room or kitchen, you can decorate it with details of the corresponding shades. For example, hang on the walls paintings or photographs with large bright sunflowers, red roses and other flowers.

You can also experiment with the color of the tablecloth and choose either a warm and bright shade, or, conversely, cold. This way you get a certain effect while eating at the table. Decorate the dining room with a large wall clock. If their dial is blue or blue, they will bring calm to the atmosphere. Contemplation of such watches will help to refrain from overeating.