This is probably going to sound crazy to a lot of you, but I promise, the underlying principle of what I’m about to write is worth while.

According to telegraph.co.uk, The University of Wisconsin-Madison recently did a little study about food consumption. The study required participants to take pictures of their food before eating it, which  would have sounded ridiculous 10 years ago, but let’s face it – digital cameras and Macbooks make it easier than ever to take pictures on a whim. After reviewing their findings,  researchers at Wisconsin-Madison concluded that photographing meals does in fact aid an individual in losing weight.

Do I think you should literally photograph all of your meals before eating?  I mean, not unless you’re compiling some sort of ironic food-on-the-table coffee-table book.  But I do think that you should take a mental picture of the things you eat before you eat them.

Ask yourself how the picture would look. Read More »

I’m starting to think that there is some truth to the rule, “You are what you eat.” I think my muffin top would attest to that statement. In general, I stick to a healthy diet (of cupcakes), but when it comes time to crack the books I know that my typical eating habits will affect my scholastic performance. While I usually opt for a bag of M&Ms at the library, I now know that a giant bag of sugar is not the best thing to get me through the hours of cramming.

In contrast, there are foods out there that have been shown to improve memory retention and attention span. Read: The foods I should be eating. I am one who will do anything to pass an exam, even if it means eating my way to better grades. Because what could be better?

Eat? For better grades? Grad school may be for me after all. Read More »

Watching television and cramming for tests are the two times when I know that I have the tendency to mindlessly consume food. But now, I will be paying closer attention to just how much I am eating due to a recent article published on msnbc.

The article discusses a study where a free chicken wing buffet was offered to 52 graduate students while they watched the Super Bowl at a sports bar. Hey now, who could pass up free chicken wings? As part of the study, the waitresses were told to clear the dishes at only half of the tables. If people had their tables continually cleared, they continually ate. Each of these people ate an average of seven chicken wings apiece. The students who did not have their table bused ate less and had eaten an average of two fewer chicken wings per person, which is 28 percent less than those whose tables had been bused.

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