No! Women choose lower-calorie foods when eating with men

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For women, the gender of their dining companions makes a difference in calorie consumption. The same isn’t true for men.

In a study published online in the journal Appetite, researchers at McMaster University in Ontario watched folks eating at three university cafeterias. The results:

‘In dyads, women observed eating with a male companion chose foods of significantly lower caloric value than those observed eating with another woman. Overall, group size was not a significant predictor of calories, but women’s calories were negatively predicted by numbers of men in the group, while the numbers of women in the group had a marginally significant positive impact on calorie estimates. Men’s calorie totals were not affected by total numbers of men or women.’

Setting aside the issue of whether this study should be a source of dismay or, heaven forbid, validation, if the findings surprise any women out there, let us know. (The researcher, a woman, wasn’t surprised. Here’s the news release.) Although maybe this would be news to some men ...

-- Tami Dennis