High Definition TV and huge screens have enhanced our home entertainment. Add surround sound and we are immersed in sights and sounds that are truly mesmerizing. Unfortunately, the experience is entirely passive. You don’t have to move a muscle. You just sit there watching and snacking.
TV viewing is fattening. The TV viewing habits of more than 50,000 women from 11 states were recently analyzed as part of the Nurses’ Health Study. During six years of observation, 3757 of these women became fat. They grew in size to a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than 30. The TV viewing habits of these women were factored in with interesting results. During the six years of follow-up 3757 women became obese with a Body Mass Index over 30.
The women who watched 40 hours of TV per week were twice as likely to become obese over the 6 year period compared with those who only watches 1-2 hours of TV per week. Reduced to a simple formula, for every 2 hour per day increase in TV viewing there was a 23% increase in obesity. See the above graph!
Watching TV is bad for your health. Watching TV will make you fat. If you are having a weight problem it is time to turn off the huge TV set and go outside and get some walking instead.