Dorito Theory and the Deceptive Heart

“Just one more chip …” How can we explain the unhealthy things we choose to do?

The Super Bowl was held last Sunday. If viewing habits were typical, more than 120 million viewers tuned in. Some people watched in bars, while others attended a neighborhood Super Bowl party. Most were probably at home watching the game in the family room, perhaps with a friend or two.

Food was plentiful. You can’t watch a game without munchies. Pizza, popcorn, buffalo wings, nachos, pigs-in-a-blanket, spinach artichoke dip, meatballs, deviled eggs, sliders and, of course, chips. There are always chips.

The thing about munchies is that you find yourself eating them not because you’re hungry but because the last chip you had didn’t satisfy. And this phenomenon is at the heart of a new understanding of our unhealthy eating habits. The hypothesis is called the “Dorito Theory,” so-named after Doritos, the nation’s most successful snack with a market-leading share of $1.5 billion in annual sales in the United States alone. The theory attempts to...