Left Brain? Right Brain?

Have you ever wondered what influences your food selection? Recently,  studies have been looking to into ‘left brain’ verses ‘right brain’ approach to food selection and cooking. Here at PenniBlack we are just fascinated by the theory and our curiosity has led us to look in detail into what is responsible for our food choices and behaviour.

 

 

When it comes to food everyone has a different approach, just like when it comes to taste; be it salty, sweet, hot or sour. So when it comes to how we choose our food, what influences our choice?  In order to understand this we must look into which side on the brain controls which characteristics. 

Well…. The left side of the brain handles organisation and logic. Therefore, a person who is left brain dominant is very organised, an analytical thinker and makes decisions based on logic. They prefer to work to schedules and deadlines and love knowing the rules and regulations. However, the right side of the brain handles the senses.  A person who is right brain dominant depend more on visual references for understanding and therefore tend to be more creative. They are more swayed by emotion and feelings which makes right brain thinkers intuitive and more curious about the world.

So how does this transpire to our food selection; when it comes to a dominant left brain individual’s food selection they tend to rely more on science. They think of calorie counting, nutrients, weight and volume of food and nutritional theories when making their food choices. Whilst a right brain thinker rely more on senses in food selection and therefore focus on the taste, colour, aroma and texture of food as well as how the food makes them feel. 

Do you have a right brain or left brain approach to food? 

Some of you however, may find you fall into both. Neuroscience tells us the two hemispheres are actually interdependent and constantly interact. Let’s take cooking for example, when we eat the right brain is more active however when it actually comes to the cooking of the food we in fact use both sides of the brain. The left side comes into play when choosing ingredients and mise en place, whereas the right side is dominant to see, hear, smell and taste the food. 

Why not take the time this week to observe your food choices and try engaging both sides of your brain for the optimal experience. As we are always told…balance is key!