PubHawk
December 2010 PMID 21148388

Thought for food: imagined consumption reduces actual consumption.

Carey K Morewedge, Young Eun Huh, Joachim Vosgerau

Full text PDF Download social card

Mentions

101
Peak: 7 in Jul 2020
across 5 sources since Jul 2020

Extended reach

376,423
potential audience

Total likes

80

Video views

1,005

Mentions per month

Jul 2020 – Jun 2025

Where it's discussed

  • News52 articles
  • X / Twitter19 posts
  • Blogs18 articles
  • Facebook10 posts
  • YouTube2 videos

AI synopsis

What people are saying

The overall tone reflects skepticism toward the study, with phrases like 'no more evidence to me than Murakami fiction,' and mentions of 'p-hacking,' showing critical engagement and doubt. Others discuss potential practical uses of mental tricks and virtual reality, demonstrating interest in applying such findings, which indicates a moderate level of engagement and interest.

AgreementLow agreement

Most discussions are skeptical or dismissive, with one explicitly criticizing the publication as lacking solid evidence.

InterestModerate interest

The social discussions show curiosity and some consideration of implications, especially around tricking oneself into healthier eating or using virtual reality as a tool.

EngagementModerate engagement

Participants reference specific methods like AR/VR and question the credibility of the research, indicating active engagement.

ImpactNeutral impact

The debates mainly focus on skepticism and application ideas rather than broad societal change, leading to a moderate impact perception.

Abstract in brief

  • Imagining eating a food like cheese repeatedly can cause you to reduce your actual intake of that food later on.
  • This decrease in consumption isn't due to finding the food less tasty, but because your desire to eat it diminishes through mental habituation.
  • The studies show that mental imagery alone — just thinking about eating — can create a habituation effect similar to actual eating, leading to less motivation to consume the food afterward.]
Read the full abstract

Top posts

Most liked on X and Bluesky
Mina Cikara
@profcikara · X

From one of the best title writers in the game, with hits like, "Thought for Food: Imagined Consumption Reduces Actual Consumption" https://t.co/MViqPPk51W

Jul 15, 2020 · 32 likes · 2 shares · 13,666 followers View post →
Eleanor Sheekey
@EleanorSheekey · X

Could we trick ourselves into eating healthier foods? --> https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD (re-sharing an older video i made that i'm quite proud of that i didnt just watch

Aug 25, 2021 · 6 likes · 3 shares · 4,889 followers View post →
عبدالله الجطيلي
@ab_psy · X

إذا كنت تسعى لإنقاص وزنك، فتخيل تناول وجبتك المفضلة، حيث اظهرت التجارب العلمية بأن تخيل تناول طعام معين مرارًا و تكرارًا يقلل من الاستهلاك الفعلي له و بالتالي قد يساعد في انقاص الوزن. https://t.co/uvfAYvECk7

Aug 5, 2022 · 3 likes · 1 share · 34,963 followers View post →
Adjie Santosoputro
@AdjieSanPutro · X

Link artikelnya ini: https://t.co/hO9bUmOfMs

Sep 20, 2021 · 2 likes · 1 share · 284,547 followers View post →
Eleanor Sheekey
@EleanorSheekey · X

Playing with food PERCEPTION - Virtual reality food & mind games https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD via @YouTube #food #science #biochemistry #VRChat #scicomm

Jul 16, 2020 · 1 like · 2 shares · 4,889 followers View post →
Paul Sas
@hormetic · X

Science pub'd claim that "Imagined Consumption Reduces Actual Consumption" No more evidence to me than Murakami fiction, since 1- @ScienceMagazine editors prefer crap social science (malevolently?) 2- An author admitted "p-hacking the hell" out of this https://t.co/ZHF2P4a17t https://t.co/aNnbZnnafH

Jun 26, 2025 · 1 like · 1 share · 1,260 followers View post →

All mentions

Paul Sas
@hormetic · X

RT @hormetic: Science pub'd claim that "Imagined Consumption Reduces Actual Consumption" No more evidence to me than Murakami fiction, sinc…

Jun 26, 2025 · 1 share · 1,260 followers View post →
Paul Sas
@hormetic · X

Science pub'd claim that "Imagined Consumption Reduces Actual Consumption" No more evidence to me than Murakami fiction, since 1- @ScienceMagazine editors prefer crap social science (malevolently?) 2- An author admitted "p-hacking the hell" out of this https://t.co/ZHF2P4a17t https://t.co/aNnbZnnafH

Jun 26, 2025 · 1 like · 1 share · 1,260 followers View post →
Flavored
@FlavoredGumball · X

@UnclBuckweet https://t.co/FbnS7NoFYq

Oct 29, 2024 · 4,754 followers View post →
عبدالله الجطيلي
@ab_psy · X

إذا كنت تسعى لإنقاص وزنك، فتخيل تناول وجبتك المفضلة، حيث اظهرت التجارب العلمية بأن تخيل تناول طعام معين مرارًا و تكرارًا يقلل من الاستهلاك الفعلي له و بالتالي قد يساعد في انقاص الوزن. https://t.co/uvfAYvECk7

Aug 5, 2022 · 3 likes · 1 share · 34,963 followers View post →
sugayan
@sugayan5 · X

想像だけで食欲を抑制できる？https://t.co/mwI0gPKLrJ Thought for food: imagined consumption reduces actual consumption https://t.co/vJo8QeT9sJ

Feb 26, 2022 · 41 followers View post →
-
@uccupp · X

RT @AdjieSanPutro: Link artikelnya ini: https://t.co/hO9bUmOfMs

Sep 20, 2021 · 1 share · 480 followers View post →
Adjie Santosoputro
@AdjieSanPutro · X

Link artikelnya ini: https://t.co/hO9bUmOfMs

Sep 20, 2021 · 2 likes · 1 share · 284,547 followers View post →
Academic YouTubers
@YTacademics · X

RT @EleanorSheekey: Could we trick ourselves into eating healthier foods? --> https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD (re-sharing an older video i made th…

Sep 10, 2021 · 3 shares · 2,106 followers View post →
Based Hatter
@BasedHatter · X

RT @EleanorSheekey: Could we trick ourselves into eating healthier foods? --> https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD (re-sharing an older video i made th…

Aug 26, 2021 · 3 shares · 4,511 followers View post →
Alex Freeman
@alex__freeman · X

RT @EleanorSheekey: Could we trick ourselves into eating healthier foods? --> https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD (re-sharing an older video i made th…

Aug 26, 2021 · 3 shares · 39 followers View post →
Eleanor Sheekey
@EleanorSheekey · X

Could we trick ourselves into eating healthier foods? --> https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD (re-sharing an older video i made that i'm quite proud of that i didnt just watch

Aug 25, 2021 · 6 likes · 3 shares · 4,889 followers View post →
Eric Thrailkill
@EricThrailkill · X

(Morewedge, Huh, & Vosgerau, 2010) Thought for food: Imagined consumption reduces actual consumption https://t.co/Dr6yOSybga

Dec 23, 2020 · 152 followers View post →
Danny Iskandar
@disk0x · X

Interesting the use of AR and VR to lessen cravings and hedonic eatings that plaque our food culture ... could be one of the useful tools in #longevity ... Playing with food PERCEPTION - Virtual reality food & mind games https://t.co/8TbqF3RAij via @YouTube

Sep 30, 2020 · 1,438 followers View post →
Runcibald Spooner
@everburningfire · X

RT @EleanorSheekey: Playing with food PERCEPTION - Virtual reality food & mind games https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD via @YouTube #food #science #b…

Jul 16, 2020 · 2 shares · 675 followers View post →
Based Hatter
@BasedHatter · X

RT @EleanorSheekey: Playing with food PERCEPTION - Virtual reality food & mind games https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD via @YouTube #food #science #b…

Jul 16, 2020 · 2 shares · 4,511 followers View post →
Eleanor Sheekey
@EleanorSheekey · X

Playing with food PERCEPTION - Virtual reality food & mind games https://t.co/UIYVXaXwpD via @YouTube #food #science #biochemistry #VRChat #scicomm

Jul 16, 2020 · 1 like · 2 shares · 4,889 followers View post →
Aɴᴛʜᴏɴʏ Oɴɢ
@adoCornell · X

RT @profcikara: From one of the best title writers in the game, with hits like, "Thought for Food: Imagined Consumption Reduces Actual Cons…

Jul 15, 2020 · 2 shares · 1,506 followers View post →
Jamie Hanson (@jamielarsh.bsky.social)
@JamieLarsH · X

RT @profcikara: From one of the best title writers in the game, with hits like, "Thought for Food: Imagined Consumption Reduces Actual Cons…

Jul 15, 2020 · 2 shares · 9,674 followers View post →
Mina Cikara
@profcikara · X

From one of the best title writers in the game, with hits like, "Thought for Food: Imagined Consumption Reduces Actual Consumption" https://t.co/MViqPPk51W

Jul 15, 2020 · 32 likes · 2 shares · 13,666 followers View post →