Health expert wants people to refuse complimentary snacks served at restaurant for scientific reason

No matter how rich or poor one can become, people hardly say no to free meals. In case you are dining at a nice restaurant and looking forward to receiving a complimentary side dish or simply a basket of bread or chips, it is time to be more careful while consuming them. What looks like a complimentary offering from the restaurant to show their generosity might be something else in disguise. Health and wellness expert Denise–who goes on TikTok by @sweetfiber–is cracking down on this practice of several restaurants and eateries where they offer free bread for a specific reason.

According to Denise, this is a well-crafted act by the restaurant to make more money from their customers. She warns people who frequently eat outside to avoid these complimentary bread and chips that tend to arrive even before you order your meal. "If you've ever wondered why restaurants give you a bowl of chips or bread right before your meals, it's not because they want you to fill up on the free stuff," she says in a video. "And they're not being generous."

It is done intentionally by the restaurants to allegedly increase the appetite of their customers so they can order more food. There is some simple science behind it. Denise explains in her video that eating items like bread or chips causes a spike in blood glucose, which helps increase one's appetite. 

"The restaurant staff knows that a glucose spike is gonna make you hungrier, crave more, and have a hard time resisting food," Denise adds. "So, while it feels like they're being generous, they are actually winning. You order more food, they bring you some more bread, and then offer you a dessert that's nearly impossible to resist." Even doctors agree with this logic behind restaurants offering complimentary snacks before meals.

According to The Atlantic, "two slices of whole wheat bread increase blood sugar to a higher level than a candy bar does," Dr. William Davis said in a report. "And then, after about two hours, your blood sugar plunges and you get shaky, your brain feels foggy, you're hungry." Soon after having free food items, the customers are ready to order all the delicious meals they want because they already have the menu in their hands and sometimes people end up ordering more than they had anticipated.

TikTok users were mostly stunned at this revelation and some of them even left their personal experiences in the comment section. Others joked that despite the scientific explanation, the complimentary meals fill their tummy and they can hardly order anything else. @jesusmendoza5149 wrote: "Ha! Their science can't beat my poverty. I'm still just gonna order one thing and no dessert with water." @lav_blue_210 added: "The bread or chips usually fill me up, so I just end up ordering something small like soup and a cocktail."

@villahidalgo87 commented, "It's something to snack on while you wait for your food so you don't get hungry and it's less pressure on the cooks." @natjanebing joked, "True! All restaurants I've worked at sit down the servers and explain the blood glucose spike while rubbing their hands together like a cartoon villain." 

So, next time you are dining out, it just might be a good idea to avoid the complimentary bread and chips the restaurant tends to offer so you can save some extra bucks that you might have spent on ordering more dishes than necessary.