The Link Between Love and Food

How many times have we seen it? That friend who got married recently is now sporting a bit of a tummy. How about if you just met someone last weekend, and you can’t stop thinking about them? Not exactly hungry are you?

So how can it be? How can love make us want to eat more and less?

What seems like a contradiction at first, is more than just true. And it’s not an individual phenomenon. It’s the deep link between food and love becoming apparent. Let’s explain.

Take the case of your married friend. They’ve long since stopped courting, and chances are their love isn’t a new one. Seemingly shallow but true, when you’ve left the dating scene, there’s no pressure of competition, so you’re not as motivated to stay in shape. The simplest explanations are most often the truest ones.

Now if you’ve recently fallen in love however, that’s a whole different ball game. You’re probably not hungry a lot. You tend to throw away a lot of your food. You see, when we’re in love or infatuated, our bodies produce norepinephrine, which is a pleasure hormone. It’s what gives you those feelings of euphoria and giddiness that we experience in love. It’s also what suppresses your appetite.

So you see, food and love cause you to gain the belly, but also to lose it.

It’s another universal truth that we put in more care in preparing a dish for a loved one that we may do otherwise. It’s also the same reason why food that’s cooked by a loved one always tastes better to you than something you may take away from a restaurant – even if you can’t quite explain it.

Perhaps this  also explains why so many couples prefer to stay home and tuck into some food, perched on the sofa, than they probably did  when they were single.

Over time, our taste in food gradually moves to meet the preferences of our loved ones. Then funnily enough, you can’t remember how there was a time you couldn’t  quite stand mac n’ cheese or karela fry.