The TV Weight Loss Regime
Did you know that, despite popular belief, watching television might be the key to successful weight loss?
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To clarify, new research has implied that spending a few seconds each day staring at a black and white flickering screen like that of a broken television set can curb hunger pangs.
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Volunteers in a study conducted by psychologists at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia were instructed to carry a handheld device that displayed flickering images for a set amount of time. These volunteers consumed 40 percent fewer calories and reported 23 percent less hunger pangs than participants who did not view the flickering images.
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Researchers have explained that this strange dieting regime follows the logic of a technique called dynamic visual noise, which has long been analyzed for how it can affect short-term working memory.
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Flinders University psychologists now suggest that the dynamic visual noise from black and white flickering lights can help people diet by blocking the vivid images that can accompany sudden foodcravings. In short, the flickering lights distract you from your reveries of chocolate chip cookies and juicy hamburgers for long enough to get you past a temporary, sudden urge to eat.
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Dieticians and health professionals around the world are beginning to hope that this "simple and effective" technique could help curb the obesity epidemic that plagues much of the developed world.
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Unfortunately for television-lovers, watching your favorite shows on a functioning TV set has not been linked to weight loss and therefore should not be used as part of a successful diet regime.
-Ally Bruschi, The Daily Meal
