Mind Over Munchies: How Sweet and Spicy Snacks Shape Fantasy Film Recall

This study investigates how sweet and spicy snack consumption influences short-term recall during fantasy film viewing through a controlled angle-subject experiment among 16-18-year-old high school students in North Texas. This research is pivotal to the existing scholarly background as sweet and spicy snacks represent two of the most commonly consumed concession items in cinema settings, yet their immediate cognitive effects on narrative comprehension and scene recall are largely inconclusive. Fantasy films were selected as the stimulus because they require sustained attention to complex narratives, making them ideal for assessing real-time cognitive performance during dietary intervention. In an era of increasing screen-based media consumption, understanding how everyday dietary choices shape transient, real-time fluctuations in cognitive performance.

A significant gap exists in the literature regarding the immediate effects of these foods on general cognition, specifically recall. This research used film-specific surveys with 5 questions on a 5-point Likert scale, in which participants rated their recall of specific scenes. Survey data were then analyzed using comparative mean analysis; control group scores (n=3 per group) were averaged separately for each film and systematically compared with the experimental subject’s scores.

Findings indicate that sweet snacks initially enhance attention but are followed by reduced recall during later viewing, consistent with the “sugar crash” phenomenon. On the latter, spicy snacks temporarily disrupted recall during consumption but were associated with improved recall after the burning sensation subsided. This research examines how everyday dietary choices may subtly shape engagement with real-time information. While the methodological limitations are preliminary and constrained, the findings offer a foundational framework for future controlled, large-scale experimental studies addressing more diverse demographics.