You're more likely to gorge on unhealthy food if you dine with people physically bigger than you, claims a controversial study published in the journal, Appetite.

Researchers at Cornell University in New York invited 82 undergraduate college students to join in a salad and pasta lunch. They also recruited an actress that at times wore and didn't wear a prosthesis that gave the appearance of her being 50 pounds heavier.

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Students were assigned to one of four scenarios:

1. The actress wore the overweight prosthesis and served herself more salad than pasta.

2. The actress wore the overweight prosthesis and mostly served herself the less healthier pasta.

3. The actress didn't wear the overweight prosthesis and served herself more salad than pasta.

4. The actress didn't wear the overweight prosthesis and served herself more pasta than salad.

In all cases, the participants, upon seeing how the actress served herself food, served themselves as much salad and pasta as they wanted.

The study reported two interesting results:

1. Eating with an overweight companion increased the intake of unhealthy food. When the actress wore the prosthesis, the participants served and ate 31.6 percent extra pasta regardless of whether the actress served herself more pasta or more salad.

2. Seeing an overweight companion eating healthy food decreased the intake of healthy food. When the actress wore the prosthesis and served herself more salad, the participants served and ate lesser salad by 43.5 percent.

Researchers concluded that people tend to eat more unhealthy food in the presence of an overweight companion.

"This finding emphasizes the importance of pre-committing to meal choices before entering the restaurant," suggested lead author Mitsuru Shimizu, Southern Illinois University's Assistant Professor of Psychology.

The study also advocated that people can avoid unhealthy diets by assessing the level of their hunger and by planning what to eat before going to a restaurant.

Although the claims face huge criticism over racism and the small number of people tested, the results were still significant enough to show the environment can affect how and what people eat.

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