One Cornell University professor says many of us are dietary sleepwalking. It's like we're in a nutritional trance. We just eat whatever happens to be there without giving it a thought.

In his book, Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think (Bantam), Professor Brian Wansink, director of the Cornell Food and Brand Lab, explains the psychology behind it all.

He writes about the "tablescape." How attractively food is arranged, how close it is to us, and how the room is lighted all affect how long we linger at the table and how much we will eat. Wansink recommends using smaller plates. With snacks, he says people using large bowls take half again as much as those using smaller bowls.

If there is more variety, people will eat more. He recommends the rule of two, taking only two foods from a buffet at any one time. Refill as often as you want, but by taking just two foods each time, you'll eat less.

When dining with others, the enjoyable atmosphere can cause you to eat up to 40 percent more. One tip: At a party, don't start eating until the last person at the table starts. Or go back to the rule of two.

Wansink says it's best to avoid huge packages of snacks. He says half the food you buy in huge quantities will be gone in a week. If you want that 5 pound barrel of snacks, divide it into small plastic bags so you won't be eating a huge quantity at once.

Want to slim down over time? Forget starving yourself. The professor says that if you cut 200 calories a day, you will be 20 pounds lighter in one year without ever feeling hungry.

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