Comments (5)

By jamie, March 2, 2010 12:44 pm

It turns out that there are times we should NOT go with our gut. I’m sure you are not shocked by this revelation. In particular, when we get ready to make a purchase, we should ignore what our emotional mind says (“Buy it! Buy it!”) and instead let our rational mind dictate whether we actually need the item and whether it is worth the money. Jonah says that paying cash actually causes our brain to sense pain, yet paying with a credit card does not – the payment is too far in the future, and our emotional brain does not understand such delays – I guess a good way to stay out of trouble if that emotional brain is too active is to keep credit cards only for actual emergencies.

Jonah describes a Stanford study conducted on four-year-olds where the children were given a marshmallow and told that they could eat the treat, or they could wait for several minutes while the researcher left the room (and watched them on camera). If they were able to wait until the researcher returned, they could have two marshmallows as a reward. Some of the children ate their single treat the minute the researcher left the room, some lasted longer (by covering their eyes or trying to distract themselves in other ways), and a few were able to wait long enough to enjoy two marshmallows.

I remember seeing videos of this experiment when I was a psych major in college. What I didn’t remember is that the researchers contacted the parents of these four-year-olds years later to find out how they were succeeding academically and with life in general. As it turns out, the longer the children were able to delay gratification, the higher their SAT scores were, the better they did in school, and the less likely they were to experiment with, for example, drugs or alcohol. Their ability to delay gratification at AGE FOUR was a better predictor of their success later on than other predictors, such as IQ.

So would I have waited for the researcher? Maybe. Or perhaps I would have decided to forfeit the double prize. How many of you with four-year-olds are going to test your kids? Mine is too little yet, or I certainly would (and surely will, when she is old enough). Then maybe I can help her learn to delay gratification if she fails the test. Incidentally, I was reading about Jonah Lehrer – he is 29 years old and has already published two bestselling books. I guess he would have been one of the kids to wait for two marshmallows.

Scroll down for other posts about How We Decide:

Other posts:
Review
Post 1: Quarterbacks have to take IQ Tests
Post 2: Emotions Control our Brains
Post 3: One Marshmallow or Two?
Post 4: The Cheap Stuff Tastes Better
Post 5: Moral Instincts Are Emotional, Not Rational
Post 6: Political Pundits vs. Dart-Throwing Chimps
Post 7: Want to be a Psychic Poker Player?

Comments (4)

By jamie,

But, Jillian says they have to be made of real food, and not chemicals (so they have to be eaten in small portions, and in moderation – okay, fine). So, that means they cannot be low sugar or low fat, because these varieties are pumped up with chemicals to make them taste good. Oh, and I am veering slightly off topic here, but have any of you read that the trendy “churned” varieties of ice cream are bad for you? But how can that be – they are supposed to be the healthier choice?! Pipe down Jillian – I know that the food industry is not on my side – it still doesn’t seem right, though.

I am now facing the dilemma of throwing away food that I spent good money on or getting rid of it by eating it, even though I am filling my body with nasty chemicals in the process. On the one hand – how can you eat that stuff knowing that it is full of chemicals (there is no way you would eat poison just because someone added a delicious flavoring to it, right?!?!) On the other hand, I’m so pumped up with food additives anyway (given my years of eating low fat, low sugar choices, and – lest you think I have deprived myself too much – lots of tasty processed junk food and fast food as well). Honestly, how much more damage can I do, finishing off the cereal bars, the low fat ice cream treats, the aspartame-sweetened drink mix, or the (gasp) slow churned, non-fat, low sugar butter pecan frozen yogurt?

Other challenges introduced in this chapter:

1. Eat within an hour of waking.
- How many of you have kids (or jobs, or both) and are able to accomplish this? It’s tricky, let me tell you. Sometimes I look at the clock, and it’s almost noon, and I am reminded by the rumbling in my belly that I have not had anything to eat (or drink) and here it is almost lunch time.

2. Eat every four hours.
- Please refer to the comment above about having children or a job. Also, being in school makes this one tricky, especially because:

3. We should eat 30% protein, 30% fat, and 40% carbs.
- I know, pack a lunch. Eating at regular intervals is still enough of a challenge without having to be balanced about it.
- Actually, she has some good advice about this one. As long as we eat mostly whole foods (this doesn’t mean eating them all by themselves, as a friend of mine once thought and made life extra difficult for herself until she learned otherwise). If we eat mostly fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy dairy and meat, we are probably getting a proper balance of nutrients overall.

4. “Don’t eat after nine p.m. Especially carbs.”
- Now wait. When am I going to eat all of the things I don’t want my daughter to eat so she does not see me and ask for some? Oh, never mind – I’m not supposed to be eating those things anymore.

There are some other rules in this chapter, but basically Jillian doesn’t make you count calories or anything too difficult. I will try to follow her advice. Moving forward I will buy more whole foods to feed my family. The biggest challenge of all, for me, will be getting hubby and kiddo to eat them. My daughter has taken to licking things she is not sure of instead of actually taking a bite of them and then making a face and saying “I don’t like it.” Then she will sometimes take a bite – but only if you don’t try to coax her too much. (And I was sure I would avoid this by making her baby food – oh well.) She is EASY compared to my husband (although he now allows different foods to touch on the plate, so there is hope for him too).

Scroll down for other posts about Master Your Metabolism:

Other posts about Master Your Metabolism:
Review
Part 1: So Long, Chocolate, Old Friend
Part 2: I KNEW It – My Hormones are Out of Whack!
Part 3: Nothing Funny About Chapter 3
Part 4: “There’s No Food in Your Food”
Part 5: Artificial Sweetener Can Mess Up Your Brain?
Part 6: “Okay, I’ll Admit it. Organics Can Be Pricey.”
Part 7: Ice Cream and Chocolate are Allowed!!!
Part 8: Really, Jillian, I Just Wanted a Cute Butt
Part 9: Protein! I Need You Protein
Part 10: Now, Off to the Market