Powered by HomeActions for Laura S. Rossinow, Broker/Agent, Keller Williams Realty, Newton, MA

Trying to eat healthier and maybe lose a little weight before putting on that bathing suit? Repainting your kitchen might help.

Ever since researchers discovered a particular shade of pink calmed inmates at the Naval Correction Center, psychologists have examined the relationship between color and emotion.

Here’s what they, along with interior decorators and feng shui experts, say about your kitchen color choices:

Red

There’s a reason McDonald’s, Checkers and Wendy’s have red logos – they’re stimulating colors that encourage you to eat. Put on a red shirt when you head out to exercise, but don’t put it on your kitchen walls.

Green

Feng shui says green is a healing, calming color, so using it in the kitchen ought to calm your appetite. It can also remind you of your plan to turn over a new (green) leaf in your life by eating a healthier diet.

Purple

Because it’s soothing, purple might help lower your blood pressure and keep you from stress eating. But it’s also sleep inducing, so it’s probably a better paint color choice for your bedroom than your kitchen.

Blue

Other than blue corn chips, blue cheese and blueberries, there isn’t much in nature that we eat that’s blue. But there’s a lot of food we don’t eat because it’s blue – think of mold on an orange. That makes it a good choice for your kitchen color.

You can take the blue-food aversion link to another level by eating from blue plates or putting a blue light bulb in your refrigerator to make your food look unattractive.

Yellow

A lot of people like yellow walls because they’re energizing. But yellow is the most tiring color on your eyes because it reflects so much light. Some people believe your baby will cry more and you and your spouse will fight more in a yellow room.

No Time To Paint?

Not in the mood to paint? Try these four tips for getting your kitchen into clean-eating shape this spring:

1. As you spring clean, set aside processed foods and donate them to the food bank. You know they’re going to get in the way of your plans to eat healthier.

2. Put the healthiest foods at eye level in the fridge and in your cabinets and pantry. Put high fat, sugary foods where they’re hard to see and hard to reach.

3. Seal your chocolate in a plastic food storage container and put that container in your garage. You’ll eat less chocolate if it’s in your garage than you will if it’s in a kitchen cabinet or in a candy dish you walk by several times a day.

4. Buy a red or yellow dish for displaying fruits and vegetables on the countertop where they’ll be top-of-mind when you’re hungry.

5. Purchase small blue dinner plates. The blue tone will make your food look unappetizing, and a smaller-size plate will make it seem like you have more food to eat.