TV Food Ads May Make You Fat—Here’s How to Slim Down
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Can TV ads for greasy, cheesy foods actually make you consume more calories? Yes, according to a new study—and the heavier you are now, the more likely it is that food ads will trigger you to eat even more.
The evidence is pretty compelling: Overweight and healthy-weight adolescents were scanned by MRIs that examined the brain responses to commercials, according to researchers at Dartmouth. In all of the adolescents, the brain regions involved in attention and focus were more strongly active when viewing food commercials than other types of commercials. But the overweight teens were more powerfully affected, particularly in the regions that control pleasure, taste and even the actions of the mouth.
In fact, the study authors believe that overweight teens may be so deeply impacted by food ads that their mouths actually simulate eating while watching them! To break the cycle, the editors at Eat This, Not That! have compiled a series of strategies that can help you turn the tide, and actually lose weight while watching TV. Here are their six best tips:
Related: 10 Easy Ways to Burn More Fat
Slim Down Strategy #6: Record Your Favorite Shows
–and only watch those shows. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying a great series, but making a regular habit of sitting and staring at a screen for an entire evening is a great way to pack on the pounds. One study in the journal JAMA, for example, followed more than 50,000 middle-age women for six years. For every two hours spent watching TV each day, women had a 23 percent higher risk of becoming obese and a 14 percent higher risk of developing diabetes. A more recent analysis of similar studies found that for every two hours spent watching TV, the risk of developing diabetes, developing heart disease, and early death increased by 20, 15 and 13 percent, respectively. Limit your TV watching to shows you love and make sure you balance that time with more active hobbies that will help you stay fit.
Related: 14 Ways to Lose Your Belly in 14 Days
Slim-Down Strategy #5: Don’t Eat During Game of Thrones
Or any other high-action show or film. People consumed 65 percent more calories from snacks while watching a high-action, high-volume Hollywood flick than viewers who munched while watching an interview, a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found. Researchers say the more distracting a TV show, the less attention people pay to eating, and the more they eat.
Slim Down Strategy #4: Pick Snacks Before the Show Starts
People who watch more TV have both a poorer understanding of proper nutrition and a more “fatalistic" view toward eating well, according to a study in The International Journal of Communication and Health that investigated the psychological reasons for strong association. In other words, TV-fanatics are more likely to hold the belief that nutrition is too difficult to understand, compared to those who watch less. To undermine the confusing messages sent by those commercials, choose your snacks before you turn on the tube. Pick healthy snacks like fresh fruit and vegetables, lightly salted edamame, or freshly popped popcorn. If you don’t feel up to the task of making popcorn from scratch (no judgment here), we’re also big fans of Quinn Popcorn. It’s one of the only microwaveable popcorns that’s free of chemicals and won’t wreak havoc on your waistline.
Related: 9 Best Late-Night Snacks for Weight Loss
Slim-Down Strategy #3: Keep Your Hands Busy
Even if you’re sitting during your go-to program, you can still burn a few calories here and there by keeping your hands moving. “Fidgeting, aka non exercise-associated thermogenesis (NEAT), does burn calories,” says speaker, author and nutrition coach Libby Mills, MS, RDN, LDN. “And so does doing any type of busy work like folding the laundry, mating socks, mending, even painting your nails (okay, guys, maybe your partner’s nails!). For the more active domestic god or goddess, activities from dusting to dishwashing can help you burn 70-150 calories during a 30-minute program.
Slim-Down Strategy #2: Don’t Eat Meals On the Couch
When it comes to full meals, stick to eating in the kitchen or at the dining room table, far away from the television set, and eat with someone else if you can, to start some stimulating conversation (and force yourself to pause between bites). Willow Jarosh, MS, RD, co-owner of C&J Nutrition and co-author of the upcoming Healthy, Happy Pregnancy Cookbook, concurs. She says, “I’d suggest creating the habit of eating dinner without the TV on and then enjoying TV time as your after-dinner relaxation. This allows you to focus on eating and can increase your mindfulness while eating (which can help decrease overeating) and also makes your TV time feel a little more special. It takes practice to create or change a habit, so keep practicing until it feels like a normal routine for you.”
Related: 8 Dinner Habits of Slim Families
Slim-Down Strategy #1: Bring the night to a close.
Starting your regular nightly routine will tell your body it’s time for bed, no matter what enticing treats might be lying around, says dietician Leah Kaufman, MS, RD, CDN. “Brush your teeth and close the kitchen! I know it’s time to stop eating for the day when my teeth are cleaned, my face is washed, and my cabinets remain shut!” That means keeping the TV in a separate room from where you sleep: Kids with access to a TV in the bedroom were 1.47 times as likely to be overweight as kids with no TV, one study in the journal Pediatric Obesity found. In fact, children who slept in bedrooms with TVs gained about one extra pound of weight each year over the course of four years than kids without TVs in their rooms, a second study found.
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