Color Matters Blog

Can colors curb your appetite and help you lose weight? Maybe. Could the color of a plate be a key to weight loss? A recent study says, “Yes.”

New research* suggests that plate colors that contrast with food help people eat less. The study revealed that people put less food on a plate with high contrast. If this is confusing, these graphics will help define contrasts:

Red (food) on a white background (plate) is a high contrast. Red (food) on a brown background (plate) is low contrast. You’ll put less red-sauce pasta on a white plate because it looks like there is more food on the plate.

Furthermore, the colors of the tablecloth may also affect appetite. When the dinner plate contrasted with the tablecloth, the study found that people saw the plate as smaller and ate less. (In the example above, the black and white checkered tablecloth creates a high contrast with the white plate; the brown tablecloth creates a low contrast with the red plate.)

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“Brain scans suggest that everything from sugar to sex lights up the brain’s pleasure circuitry. ” * For some, it may be chocolate or pasta; for others it may be exercise or gambling. This can result in addiction with the same results: The body steadily ratchets up the quantity necessary to provide the same high.

What about color? Can color press the pleasure button in your brain? Can you develop a case of color addiction? Now that the brilliant colors of autumn (in the Northern Hemisphere) are almost gone, could you be entering a state of color withdrawal? If so, it’s possible that the shift from the reds, oranges, and yellows of fall to the greys and browns of early winter have you feeling gloomy. It’s worth noting that some people do begin to experience episodes of depression known as SAD  (Seasonal Affective Disorder) at this time of the year because there’s less exposure to daylight. Perhaps color also plays a similar role.

What do you think? Do colors press the pleasure button in your brain? Are you experiencing color withdrawal now the amazing colors of autumn are gone? In any case, Christmas is coming and our homes will be filled twinkling lights and much more.

* Source

We can be green with envy, turn purple with rage, see red, and feel blue.  But what about fright? What’s the color of fear? And for that matter, what about the colors of Halloween?

If you've ever wondered if color can make a multi-million dollar difference, check out this example of a special shade of blue.