The global Coronavirus pandemic has brought life to a standstill. With little or no outdoor activities, citizens are staying in and working or studying from home. Formal clothing is now practically a thing of the past, as comfortable casuals are all that we practically wear. However, if a recent study is to be believed, we might be better off wearing formal clothes if we are trying to eat healthier food. According to the findings of the study, the kind of clothes we wear might have a direct impact on our food choices. Consumers are believed to make healthier food choices when wearing formal clothes.
Study suggests formal attire is known to prompt healthier food choices.
A research was conducted on students from various universities across China, Australia, and the United States. The final study was published in the Journal of Business Research. The study explains how consumers spend a considerable amount of time on their choice of clothing to change how people may perceive them. Therefore, the choice of clothing may also have other behavioural impacts such as the kind of food we choose to eat. So, if a consumer wears formal clothing, he is likelier to eat healthy food in order to make an impression on his peer group. Casual clothing would then directly be associated with comfort and relaxation, thus pointing towards less healthy food choices.
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If you are trying to eat healthy, wearing formal clothes may help.
"We find that formal and informal clothes styles can activate different clothes-image associations and thus make consumers more likely choose a food type (healthy or unhealthy) that is congruent with a specific set of clothes-image associations, referred to as clothes-food congruence," reads the abstract to the study.
This study could be of significance especially in the times of the pandemic when the majority of people are foregoing formal clothes to casual ones. So, the next time you find yourself reaching out for a bag of chips - maybe consider changing your attire to make a healthier food choice. Tell us in the comments below if you feel the difference!