Brian Wansink's new book, Mindless Eating, is due out in a few days. The Cornell professor has conducted fascinating experiments looking our how much we eat, and why most of us seem to be eating way more than we need.

His conclusions are fascinating, and they speak to the large topic of mindlessness. For example, moviegoers in Chicago were given buckets of 5-day-old popcorn to eat as they entered the theater. Those given large buckets ended up eating 53% more stale popcorn than those with smaller buckets. And they didn't even enjoy it! 

His most famous experiment involves a soup bowl that secretly refills itself. Diners enjoying soup from the endless bowl averaged 67% more soup (and calories) than those supping from the normal bowl. And some of the endless bowl "victims" didn't stop until the 20-minute experiment stopped, knocking back as much as a full quart of soup.

What's the lesson here for us?  Dr. Wansink has a few (from an article in today's New York Times:

… sit next to the person you think will be the slowest eater when you go to a restaurant, and be the last one to start eating. Plate high-calorie foods in the kitchen but serve vegetables family style. Never eat directly from a package. Wrap tempting food in foil so you don’t see it. At a buffet put only two items on your plate at a time.

Good advice, all. I'd like to add two more ideas.

1. Eat real food. No animal in nature overeats the way we do, even in environments of caloric plenty. There's something about our fake foods that tricks or overwhelms our natural "stop eating, you've had enough" circuitry. Try overeating a pound of salad greens. If you empty the bag, you're up about 80 calories (Compared to a pound of potato chips, which adds a staggering 2600 calories to your engine).

2. Instead of merely accepting your mindlessness, do some work on your awareness. Try meditating or deep breathing for one or two minutes before starting your meal. Practice deep gratitude toward all the efforts - human and other - that had to come together for this meal to be in front of you now.

And of course, before eating soup, check the bowl for hidden tubes.