If you want to eat less of an item, buy it individually wrapped rather than loose in the bag. For example, let’s say you could buy individual wrapped candies and put them in a bowl, or put loose candies in that same bowl. Go for the wrapped candies because you will eat more of the loose candy. I noticed this at Christmas. I had peanut M&Ms in a candy dish. Every time someone would walk by the dish, he or she would grab a few. When I switched the bowl to individually wrapped candies, they lasted longer.
It appears that anything that slows down our availability to food helps us eat less of it. Wrapped foods slow us down! A study in Appetite found that the availability of food influences our eating. If we have a bit of a physical imposition in getting that food, it affects how much we eat.
Not only did the researchers test the difference between unwrapped and wrapped candies, but they also tested the difference between eating candies with your hand versus using a tong. Again, the tong slowed things down and that group ate less.
The take away. If you are going to have candy around the house, buy the wrapped pieces! A little physical effort slows down the snacking! And most of us need all the tricks!