Tune Your Appetite: How Music Impacts Food Choice, Intake, and Emotions During a Meal

Auditory cues, such as music, can potentially impact our eating behavior. In the present study, the effects of listening to music that varied in liking while consuming a meal on hunger, meal duration, food intake, and hedonic ratings were investigated. Measures of emotion were also obtained to understand the changes in meal duration, and both food intake and a 10-point visual analogue scale rating. A crossover experimental design involving 66 participants (27 males, 39 females) was employed, in which participants consumed lunch in a control condition, and while listening to music that they either liked or disliked. The results showed that listening to liked music significantly increased eating time, the intake of healthy food, and the consumption of afternoon snacks. Conversely, listening to disliked music significantly increased the consumption of unhealthy food. Additionally, the study explored the role of emotions in explaining these changes. It was found that ratings of hunger were higher, and more negative emotions were evoked, when participants consumed lunch while listening to disliked music. The silent and liked music conditions, which evoked more positive emotions, resulted in higher ratings of food pleasantness, overall liking of healthy and unhealthy food, and food satisfaction. Overall, the findings of this study highlight the significant influence of music upon appetite, food liking, and emotional responses during a lunch meal, emphasizing the potential practical applications in promoting healthier eating behaviors in real-world food-eating environments.