Study Shows Eating Pasta Increases Happiness

Photo Credit: Danijela Prijovik VIA Unsplash

A study conducted by the Behavior and Brain Lab at the Free University of Languages and Communication IULM in Milan, Italy, has found that eating pasta makes people happier.

This study measured the physical and neurological changes of 40 participants aged 25 to 55 while eating pasta. These changes were compared to the physical and neurological behaviour of the participants when they were listening to their favourite music or watching Olympic football or tennis.

Participants were asked when they ate pasta, and the most common responses were related to having a family meal, “friendship,” or feeling happy. 40 per cent of the participants considered pasta to be their comfort food and 76 per cent of the participants said pasta made them feel “a lot” happier.

The act of eating pasta helped with “activating cognitive memory processes” — allowing participants to recall specific things — but what those things are remains unknown. As well, eating pasta generated equally positive or even more positive emotions for participants compared to when they were listening to their favourite song or watching their favourite sports team score a goal, and significantly more positive facial expressions compared to when they were watching their favourite sports team score a goal.

According to Vincenzo Russo, the Professor of Consumer Psychology and Neuromarketing at IULM University who is also the Founder and Coordinator of the Neuromarketing Behavior & Brain Lab IULM, “The [study’s] results tell us that it is precisely when we eat pasta that we are most emotionally active. It is, therefore, the real act of tasting and savoring the dish in its full flavor to stimulate the most positive memories and emotions. This cognitive and emotional activation determined by the taste of pasta is so strong, pleasant and engaging to persist even moments after eating.”

Scientific literature, including three studies published in The Lancet Public Health, also relates pasta to having a positive impact on one’s mood because of its tryptophan and B vitamins. Professor Piretta, a gastroenterologist and professor of the University Campus Bio-Medico in Rome, says that “carbohydrates are molecules made of sugar, so the sugar taken from our intestines and arrived at the brain determines this feeling of well-being.”

However, more research is needed to confirm the connection between pasta and its positive impact on one’s mood. This study has not been peer-reviewed and is limited due to its small subject pool.