Is it possible that the body becomes trained to digest familiar foods more efficiently? I once went on a very strict fairly high calorie diet of mainly carbs, same thing every day and lost 30 lbs in one month. Folks that eat in restaurants tend to eat different things all the time. In the old days, families ate at home, most moms did not have endless menus.

Eating the same foods everyday!?!?

Sounds like every diet I have ever seen or been on.

And now back to my lunch, salad, again. Boy, I wish I could have a bacon cheese burger instead. :)

I agree with this concept. It has worked for me for 20 years. I eat the same thing almost every day. Of course I eat healthy low calorie high nutrition foods, so that works in my favor. I do not think my diet is monotonous, and I do look forward to my meals. It just keeps food off my mind. Makes shopping easier too. Of course when you have to cook for a family (I live alone) things are different, they want what they see on TV or what they see others eating.

Why can't you have a bacon cheeseburger?  Are you not an adult that prepares or buys your own meals?

If eating the same foods day after day decreases calorie intake, then how do you explain the rampant obesity rates in small town rural America?

I have been eating the same lunch for months now and have finally noticed that I eat less and less of it each day. I just came across this article and said "wow". This could be true. I eat high protein meals of the same thing weekly for supper and notice I eat less. I have lost 100 lbs doing this. I think this study may have merit.

I have been eating the same lunch for months now and noticed I am eating much less. I eat high protiein meals during the day and weekly I eat the same foods over and over again for dinner. I just saw this article and said "wow". I think there is some merit to this study. I have lost 100 lbs eating this way.

@No one knows:

Duplicate posts are not necessary, thanks. :)

@Everyone else:

The human body craves variety most when the person's diet is incomplete. When you don't eat enough of a specific nutrient, somehow the body knows what foods have that nutrient, and all of a sudden, you have a huge craving for a specific food (say, a baked potato with garlic salt, butter and bacon bits with a cilantro garnish - it's just an example). Every so often, especially when I'm fighting off a virus or other bug, I'll have specific cravings, and when I satisfy them, I recover a bit quicker than if I hadn't had those foods I was craving.

That said, if you eat a balanced diet, you can eat the same thing every day and not have cravings, and not need variety (especially if the food is sweet). However, if you like to eat, and you're used to variety, you're going to get sick of eating the same thing day in and out real quick.

In summary, it's part learned behavior, and it's part biofeedback (via cravings). If you get cravings, listen to them, because you probably are needing something.