Research findings on the appetite-enhancing effect of the color red and the appetite-reducing effect of blue have been inconsistent. The present study used a placebo approach and investigated whether verbal suggestions can enhance color-appetite effects.
A total of 448 women participated in two experiments. They viewed images with differently colored sweet foods (original color, blue, red, colorless (black-and-white); experiment 1;
All colored food items were associated with a lower propensity to eat compared to the food items in the original color. The color suggestion (compared to no suggestion) additionally decreased the propensity to eat blue and black-and-white food items. Colored backgrounds did not influence food wanting.
This study demonstrated that red and blue coloring of visual food cues did not have the predicted effects on food wanting. However, the combination of specific food colors with specific color suggestions might be useful to change the willingness to eat sweet products.