Salva Mubarak Senior Features Writer

After the ‘Orange Peel Theory’ and the ‘Ketchup Test’, there’s another viral theory linked to food and it has people reevaluating their relationships.

The ‘Doritos Theory’ is making the rounds online and it has led to many people stepping back and taking a close, hard look at their dating and relationship patterns. Intrigued? We decided to investigate deeper into the new delicious-sounding viral phenomenon…

What is the ‘Doritos Theory’?

While we might not know where the term comes from, it was recently popularised by Tik Tok creator Celeste Aria, who summarised it succinctly in a now-viral video. In the video, she closely examines the act of eating Doritos, or any chips for that matter. “Eating chips is addictive because the peak of the experience is when you’re tasting it and not after,” she says, “There’s nothing that exists actually once the experience is done.”

©Pexels

The theory is that we tend to fall back on things that give us momentary pleasure, because they are satisfying and delicious, and this, sometimes, keeps us from finding what will truly fulfill us, like a proper nutritious meal.

How does the ‘Doritos Theory’ affect relationships?

The ‘Doritos Theory’ is meant to be a metaphor for addiction to things that are not healthy for us like social media obsession or toxic relationships. It asks you to become more mindful and aware of the lifestyle choices you’re making and evaluate whether they’re actually making you happy or you’re just addicted to the momentary pleasure it brings.

Sometimes we stick with a partner we know is not good for us but only for the comfort and sense of security that being in a relationship brings. The ‘Doritos Theory’, while only scratching the surface of the many elements of addiction, is trying to normalise stepping back and making more effort for something that is actually good for you.

Like Aria recommends in her video, it asks of people to remove anything from their lives that “falls into the Doritos territory”.

Would you try the ‘Doritos Theory’ to examine your life?