餐前爱拍美食照? 食欲会更好!

Posting a photo of the food you’re about to eat on Instagram has become a daily ritual for many. Often this ‘food porn’ isn’t as appealing to those looking at it, but scientists are now claiming taking a photo of your food before you eat it makes it taste better.

在吃饭之前先拍照、上传网络共享的行为几乎成了许多人的日常准则。虽然看照片的人对拍下来的食物并不那么感兴趣，但有科学家称在饭前拍照能让照相者更好地享用食物。

Researchers at University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management claim taking a photo puts you in the moment and in doing so, heightens your senses. The person taking the photo will, on some level, feel the difference creating an incentive to continue the practice.

明尼苏达大学卡尔森管理学院研究者表示，拍照行为能将人带入特定时刻，此时你的感觉灵敏度上升，在一定程度上会感到与平常不同的氛围，从而有动力继续这一饭前拍照的习惯。

Kathleen Vohs, the professor of Excellence in Marketing at the Carlson School, wondered about the power of rituals after noticing the funny routines that people often perform before eating and drinking.

在观察到人们吃喝之前各种有趣的习惯后，凯尔森学院市场学优秀教授凯瑟琳·沃斯想知道习惯的力量究竟有多神奇。

Vohs and colleagues conducted experiments to investigate whether these kinds of ritualistic behaviour influences taste.

沃斯和同事为探求固定习惯是否能影响食物口感而做了几个实验。

In the first experiment, some participants were asked to eat a piece of chocolate following a detailed set of instructions: ‘Without unwrapping the chocolate bar, break it in half. Unwrap half of the bar and eat it. Then, unwrap the other half and eat it.’

在第一个实验中，一部分参与者要按照详细的规定程序吃巧克力：“不要撕掉锡纸，直接把巧克力掰成两半。然后再剥开第一半的锡纸 吃掉巧克力。接着再剥另一半，吃掉巧克力。”

The other participants were simply instructed to relax for a short amount of time and then eat the chocolate bar however they wanted.

其他参与者只是被告知要放松休息，一小段时间后，他们可以按照自己的方式吃巧克力。

The results showed that those who had performed the ritual rated the chocolate more highly, savoured it more, and were willing to pay more for the chocolate than the other group.

实验结果表明，同一款巧克力，按照传统程序食用的人比其他人的评价更高，也更能品出其中滋味，他们还愿意花更高的价钱购买这种巧克力。

A second experiment reinforced these findings, showing that random movements don't produce a more enjoyable eating experience. The data also revealed that a longer delay between ritual and consumption bolstered these effects, even with a neutral food like carrots.

第二个实验同样证明了上述结果：随意的行为不能创造出更为愉悦的用餐经历。还有数据显示，固定习惯行为和摄入食物之间的时间间隔越长，感知到的味道就越好，哪怕就是像胡萝卜一样普通的食物也是如此。

While these rituals may seem small or mundane, the researchers note that the effects they produce are quite tangible. And while rituals are common before mealtimes, they could play a role in other situations, too.

研究者认为，虽然这些固定习惯看上去平凡而微不足道，但却能产生巨大的实际效果。既然用餐之前的小习惯很普遍，那它们在其它情况下也可有用武之地。