Relationships

Men Eat More Food When They're Around Women, And The Reason Why Is Kinda Sad

by Stacey Leasca

Women often get a bad reputation for being picky eaters on dates.

Women have always been the majority target for diet companies, fat-free foods and low-carb everything, and are generally expected to order "just a salad" on dates.

Men, on the other hand, have always been able to enjoy the foods they want without any judgment at all.

And while society may not be judging men for indulging in every food imaginable, according to one new study, men may be subconsciously judging themselves for their eating habits while dining out with the opposite sex.

Researchers at Cornell University set out to discover if men's eating habits are, in fact, different in front of women and came to an interesting, and kind of sad, conclusion.

To find out how men eat on dates, the researchers staked out a local all-you-can-eat pizza place. The team found men ate 93 percent more pizza and 86 percent more salad when they were dining with women versus when they were dining with other men.

Why are men eating so much more? The study's findings say,

Our observation of men 'eating heavily' is sensibly viewed in an evolutionary perspective as men 'showing off.'

Kevin Kniffin, the lead study author and visiting assistant professor at Cornell University, additionally notes to The Atlantic,

There is recent work that explores the possibility that eating spicy food might be a way that people 'show off' since it (arguably) signals a higher tolerance for something that others would consider painful. The new research article examines the question of whether overeating might function as a comparable kind of signal that a person is healthy enough that they can engage in unhealthful behavior of excessive eating (and still end up okay).

So, either men are showing off just how much they can eat, or showing off just how much food they can eat and still survive.

Guys, ladies aren't impressed with how many slices you can stuff down your throat on a date. Instead, try having your fill of pizza (and no more) and a nice conversation about whatever you're into.

Sure, it's cheesy, but hey, better than barfing up pepperoni halfway through the date, right?

Citations: Men Overeat to Impress Women (The Atlantic)