Eating together can trigger sexual desire!

When it comes to consuming calories with a person of the opposite sex, sharing meals sparks significantly more jealousy than meeting that same person for coffee.

“Our research suggests that sharing lunch involves more than the physical consumption of calories,” conclude co-authors Kevin M. Kniffin, a postdoctoral researcher at Cornell University's Dyson School of Applied Economics, and Brian Wansink, the director of Cornell's Food and Brand Lab, in their new paper, “It's Not Just Lunch: Extra-Pair Commensality Can Trigger Sexual Jealousy,” which appears in the peer-reviewed journal, PLoS ONE.

Research by Kniffin and Wansink measured the amount of jealousy reported by current romantic partners if one of them were contacted by an ex lover and subsequently engaged in several food- and drink-based activities.