WHY YOU SHOULD NEVER HAVE CLEANED YOUR PLATE

Without too much effort, I can remember long dinner table sessions where my father slammed his fist on the table and roared that I had to eat everything on my plate. Or well, it wasn't that barbaric, but there were indeed heated ‘discussions’ where I said I wasn't hungry anymore and he said I was out of luck and had to finish my plate. He is not the type of person to immediately point to Africa, but ultimately, those kinds of arguments are of course the basis for the whole “clean your plate” story. Others are hungry, so you shouldn't act so spoiled and just eat what you can.

Well, new research from the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (no idea what that is, but it sounds serious and therefore smart) shows that this has not necessarily been a good idea. Because children who have learned from a young age to eat everything on their plate tend to eat more later in life. “These children have, on average, a higher BMI than children who do not have to do that.” And that's not all, because children no longer recognize the signals of ‘being hungry’ and ‘being full’ well because they always had to finish their plate despite everything.

Aha! So that's why I can't just eat one little frog but always have to finish the whole bag right away! And that's why there is no such thing as one glass of wine for me, that whole bottle has to be finished! Suddenly everything becomes so clear to me. I'm glad that's resolved, and as you can see; everything always has its causes. If you're sitting at the table with children nowadays, the same researchers suggest as a better alternative that you should just give children smaller portions. And if they are still hungry afterwards, they can get an extra portion. And then they will all become very controlled and disciplined little people later on. High five!