from Cornell University Food and Brand Lab
Lighting in many restaurants is dimmed to enhance the dining experience and make for a more pleasant atmosphere. The results could be taking longer to eat and eating less. Both good. However, researchers at Cornell University Food and Brand Lab say people in dimly lighted rooms order less healthy food. The study showed those dining in brightly lighted room were sixteen to twenty-four percent more likely to order healthy foods. The reason, they suggest, is people feel more alert in brighter rooms and more likely to make healthier choices. Proof of that came when the participants in the dimly lighted rooms were given a caffeine placebo. Then, more alert, they tended to make more healthy food choices.