Size and shape of plates and size of wine glasses and bottles: impact on self-serving of food and alcohol

Abstract

Background The physical properties of tableware could influence selection and consumption of food and alcohol. There is considerable uncertainty, however, around the potential effects of different sizes and shapes of tableware on how much food and alcohol people self-serve. These studies aimed to estimate the impact of: 1. Plate size and shape on amount of food self-served; 2.Wine glass and bottle size on amount of wine self-poured. Methods 140 adults participated in two laboratory studies—each using randomised within-subjects factorial designs—where they self-served food (Study 1) and wine (Study 2): Study 1: 3 plate sizes (small; medium; large) × 2 plate shapes (circular; square). Study 2: 3 wine glass sizes (small; medium; large) × 2 wine bottle sizes (75 cl; 50 cl). Results Study 1: There was a main effect of plate size: less was self-served on small (76 g less, p < 0.001) and medium (41 g less, p < 0.001) plates, compared to large plates. There was no evidence for a main effect of plate shape (p = 0.46) or a size and shape interaction (p = 0.47). Study 2: There was a main effect of glass size: less was self-served in small (34 ml less, p < 0.001) and medium (17 ml less, p < 0.001) glasses, compared to large glasses. There was no evidence of a main effect of bottle size (p = 0.20) or a glass and bottle size interaction (p = 0.18). Conclusions Smaller tableware (i.e. plates and wine glasses) decreases the amount of food and wine self-served in an initial serving. Future studies are required to generate estimates on selection and consumption in real world settings when numerous servings are possible. Protocol registration information: OSF (https://osf.io/dj3c6/) and ISRCTN (10.1186/ISRCTN66774780).

Impact of Sizes of Servings, Glasses and Bottles on Alcohol Consumption: A Narrative Review

“…Consistent with this, larger wine glasses increase purchasing of wine in restaurants, where more wine is sold by the bottle and therefore free-poured by customers and staff into glasses, but not in bars, where more wine is sold by the glass in fixed serving sizes [ 25 ]. Accordingly, one laboratory study found that the larger the glass, the larger the volume of wine that was poured into it [ 49 ]. Additionally, supporting this possible mechanism is evidence suggesting that glass size does not appear to have an effect on micro-drinking behaviours—such as sip size—or perceptions of serving size—when fixed volumes of wine are presented in different sized glasses [ 50 ].…”

The Effect of Downsizing Packages of Energy-Dense, Nutrient-Poor Snacks and Drinks on Consumption, Intentions, and Perceptions—A Scoping Review

“…Twelve out of 15 studies examined the effect of potential moderators, including gender ( n = 8), food preference ( n = 5), prior exposure to diet-related materials ( n = 2), dietary restraint ( n = 2), and serving size labelling ( n = 2). Three studies found that the effects of a smaller single package on reducing consumption or intention to consume was more prominent among males than females [ 40 , 45 ], but five other studies did not observe any difference between genders [ 37 , 41 , 44 , 47 ]. Four studies using popcorn observed the tendency to overeat from a larger package was more prominent when children [ 37 ] and adults [ 42 , 43 ] were offered their preferred snacks (for example, fresh popcorn) compared to not preferred (for example, stale popcorn); however, this was not observed in one study in adults [ 39 ].…”

“…The UK [44] Low Participants intended to consume significantly less (22 g/27%) from the smaller pack than larger pack. This effect was significant for both genders, but it was more prominent for males than for females.…”

Will the Farm to Fork strategy be effective in changing food consumption behavior? A health psychology perspective

“…Furthermore, not only proximity to products within supermarkets but also proximity to supermarkets themselves has been identified as a predictor of food consumption and dietary health, which could be a further avenue for designing healthier cities through planning initiatives (Fiechtner et al, 2016). In out-of-home consumption settings such as cafeterias or restaurants, using smaller tableware may reduce serving sizes, so potentially reducing both the amount consumed and the amount of food waste (Clarke et al, 2021).…”