Food, Feeding, and Romance

Have you ever wondered why a guy gives the girl he’s romantically interested in a box of chocolates?

Or maybe you’ve seen the main character and his love interest in a restaurant in your favorite movie sitting side by side, and when the food comes, they feed each other and you’ve wondered why is this supposed to be romantic?

Some people and some scientists have actually done research on the connection between food and romance, as well as why feeding your date is considered romantic. Would it come as a surprise to you that what they found is that it’s all in our heads?

That’s right – food and love both produce hormones, like dopamine, norepinephrine, which make us feel good, and our bodies produce a chemical stimulant, phenylethylamine (PEA). The combination of these hormones and the chemical stimulant make our bodies excited and alive.

Can you guess what one of the main foods associated with love and romance is?

Well, here’s a hint: Americans annually purchase almost 60 million pounds of this stuff in just one week, and February 13^th  is the biggest day of the year for sales of this food.

Need another hint? Look at the picture above. That’s right – chocolate!

Christian romance writers aren’t interested in taking our leading man and lady beyond the bedroom door, so knowing that chocolate and some of the other foods I’ll mention in this article are considered aphrodisiacs doesn’t matter to us. However, using some of these foods in our romance scenes can help build the romantic interest our leading man and lady have for each other.

There are differences between chocolates. One important difference between high end and low end chocolates: high end chocolates have an intense flavor and luscious feeling in your mouth. The taste experience of chocolate can be a dreamy, sensuous experience which is why a high end chocolate can make people feel romantic, and a gift of chocolate is a way to show a loved one that you value them.

Other foods known to possibly build romantic feelings are: avocados, tomatoes, oysters, spinach, pumpkin seeds, peanuts, crab, bananas, asparagus, chilies, figs, mangoes, peaces, pistachio nuts, almonds, cheddar cheese and berries with whipped cream.

Now let’s look at food sharing.

Research conducted to determine the levels of food sharing that express to observers how romantic you are with your significant other:

    1) Not letting someone have your food at all – no intimacy.

    2) Letting someone else eat off your plate shows a deeper connection than one you would have with a stranger.

    3) Sharing food that someone else has already touched increases the romantic level from 74 percent to 90 percent.

    4) Physically putting food into your partner’s mouth shows the highest level of intimacy and leads observers to assume there is a romantic involvement.

    Other research determined that food sharing stems from a parent sharing food with their child. Parents have a natural tendency to feed their child which shows a strong bond between parent and child. It’s natural to share food with blood relatives. However, studies show that sharing food outside your bloodline means the person you are sharing food with has a significant meaning to you.

Now you have foods and food sharing that you can incorporate into your romance stories to build the bond between your leading man and woman. Or if you need to build some conflict, have them share food in a restaurant while the town gossip or the third person looks on.

You can find her online at:

Website: kellyfbarr.com

MeWe: KellyBarr8