A Good Excuse for Overeating

It seems that intellectual work causes a substantial increase in calorie intake – at least under experimental conditions. A Canadian study published online in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine examined the calories consumed by young women under three different conditions – resting, reading, and doing tests.

Fourteen students aged 20 to 25 were recruited. Blood samples were taken before, during, and after each session, along with appetite sensation scores. Each participant took part in each of three 45-minute situations on different days: resting in a sitting position, reading a document and writing a summary, or performing a battery of computerized tests; each session was followed by access to an ad libitum buffet.

There were no differences reported in appetite sensations between after the different activities. However, the women spontaneously ate 203 more calories after the reading/summary activity and 253 more calories after the computer tests, compared with those eaten after the resting session. This represents a 24% and 29% increase, respectively, over the rest period.

The average blood cortisol levels were higher over the 45-minute intellectual activities that the resting session, and they were accompanied by significant increases in variability in blood glucose and insulin levels.

Who knows? The move towards more jobs of an intellectual nature, compared to those requiring physical activity (or not thinking?), may be responsible for part of the obesity epidemic we are facing these days.