We all know we should be eating healthy foods. Science is clear about huge benefits if we make healthy food choices, and serious consequences if we’re not careful with diet. But there’s problem. Research shows people expect unhealthy foods to taste better than healthier alternatives, and pushy messaging that urges us towards healthier options can sometimes backfire, triggering psychological reactance. In new study, scientists explored way to get around this, investigating how music can subtly affect people’s food choices, both in real-life cafeteria and in simulated restaurant environments.
Results, reported in npj Science of Food, suggest low-arousal music can actually nudge people to make healthier food selections than music that’s highly arousing.
Background Music Is Extrinsic Cue That Shapes Food Response
“Background music is particularly relevant cue: It is extrinsic to food itself, often operates outside focal awareness, and can be readily manipulated in restaurant settings,” team led by co-first authors Shucheng Cao and Bihe Wen from Macau University of Science and Technology in China explains.
“Even basic acoustic properties can shape food-related responses,” researchers note.
These food-related responses can have different kinds of effects. In previous research, scientists found high-volume music led to unhealthy food choices, perhaps because people had elevated excitement levels due to loudness.
By contrast, lower-volume music led to increased sales of healthy foods, potentially because people were more relaxed than in high-volume scenario. According to Cao and Wen’s team, these are just some of ways background music cues can convey taste-related meanings to listener, subtly shaping evaluations of food options.
“When music is perceived as matching cuisine’s characteristics, individuals are more likely to prefer, and thus to choose, those options that feel congruent with that setting,” researchers write. “Consistent with this congruency account, ‘healthy’ sounds, characterized by higher pitch, slower tempo, lower volume, undistorted timbre, legato articulation, and consonant harmony, have been found to steer choices towards healthier options, relative to ‘unhealthy’ sounds that exhibit opposite acoustic properties,” team explains.
Another way of putting it is people seem to associate healthy eating with low-arousal music – sounds that are relaxing and slower – whereas more highly arousing music, which is faster and perhaps more exciting, is linked to unhealthy eating.
Real Cafeteria Experiment – 911 Food Items Over 8 Days
To test hypothesis, researchers conducted four experiments: one in real university cafeteria in Macau, and three experiments based around simulated restaurant scenarios.
In cafeteria experiment, which ran across eight working days, cafeteria alternated between days where low-arousal or high-arousal music was played, with songs’ arousal levels having been rated separately in previous test by other participants.
In total, over eight days, 911 food items were sold, with buyers choosing more healthy items on days when low-arousal music was played: 18.94 percent of purchases on low-arousal music days were healthy foods, compared with 13.59 percent of purchases in high-arousal condition. That is nearly 40% relative increase in healthy choices simply by changing background music arousal.
Restaurant Simulations – Hip-Hop And Jazz Low-Arousal Wins
In separate experiment, participants looked at healthy lunch menu, while listening to either low- or high-arousal hip-hop music. Those exposed to low-arousal music reported higher consumption intention than people who heard high arousal music average rated scores of 6.08 vs 5.56. In similar experiment simulating healthy restaurant with jazz background music, low-arousal jazz also resulted in greater consumption intention than high arousal jazz 6.02 vs 4.4.
In final restaurant simulation, low- and high-arousal music were layered over background noise. Again, low-arousal music was linked with higher consumption intention than high-arousal music or background noise played in isolation 5.91 vs 5.59 vs 5.14.
Researchers suggest low-arousal music may signal calmer, more relaxing dining atmosphere to people, in which healthier food options feel more appropriate.
In all restaurant scenarios, participants exposed to low-arousal music also reported higher perceived comprehension – greater sense that situation presented made sense and fit together coherently.
Analysis: Why Low-Arousal Music Reduces Cognitive Resistance
“Crucially, when cues are readily interpretable, individuals tend to form more favorable attitudes and stronger intentions,” researchers explain. “Moreover, such experiences have been shown to translate into behavioral outcomes. This is because perceived comprehension can reduce cognitive resistance, strengthening persuasive impact,” team adds.
Effect works outside focal awareness, not pushy health messaging that triggers reactance, but subtle congruency that makes healthy choice feel fitting.
Team says findings could have practical applications for hospitality venues, food retailers, and even online shopping, all of which could promote healthy foods by curating playlists with low-arousal music.
Whether people can tap into same effect while doing grocery shopping remains to be seen. But next time you’re perusing aisles, nodding along with beat on headphones, perhaps calmer playlist wouldn’t hurt.
Q&A
Q: What type of music helps you make healthier food choices?
A: npj Science of Food study found low-arousal relaxing music with higher pitch, slower tempo, lower volume, legato, consonant harmony increased healthy purchases to 18.94% vs 13.59% for high-arousal.
Q: How does background music affect food choices?
A: Background music is extrinsic cue operating outside awareness; low-arousal signals calm dining where healthy foods feel congruent, raising perceived comprehension and reducing cognitive resistance.
Q: Was music effect tested in real restaurant?
A: Yes, Macau University cafeteria 8-day test of 911 items plus three simulated restaurants with hip-hop and jazz showed low-arousal consistently raised healthy consumption intention 6.08 vs 5.56.
FAQ
1. Who led low-arousal music and food study?
Study led by co-first authors Shucheng Cao and Bihe Wen from Macau University of Science and Technology, published in npj Science of Food.
2. What defines healthy vs unhealthy sounds?
Healthy sounds: higher pitch, slower tempo, lower volume, undistorted timbre, legato articulation, consonant harmony; unhealthy sounds opposite.
3. How much did healthy choices increase with calm music?
In real cafeteria, healthy foods were 18.94% of purchases on low-arousal days vs 13.59% on high-arousal days, about 39% relative increase.
4. Did music type matter hip-hop or jazz?
Effect held across genres: low-arousal hip-hop scored 6.08 vs 5.56 high-arousal, low-arousal jazz 6.02 vs 4.4 high-arousal in consumption intention.
5. Can playlists be used to promote healthy eating?
Researchers say hospitality venues, food retailers, online shopping could curate low-arousal playlists to nudge healthier selections without pushy messaging that backfires.
