Dieters beware!
Updated: Mar. 19, 2009
Trying to get your body bikini ready in a hurry? You might want to hold that thought. An animal study
Trying to get your body bikini ready in a hurry? You might want to hold that thought.
An animal study from the University of Glasgow suggests that binge eating and crash dieting can reduce life expectancy by up to 25 percent.
The study was conducted by observing stickle fish who were kept on a “binge then diet” eating regimen. The study compared the growth rate, reproductive success and lifespan of the fish to the control group of stickle fish who were kept on a regular diet.
According to the results, the average lifespan of the dieting stickle fish was three-quarters that of the fish following normal eating patterns.
The findings, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, are said to be most important for human teenagers and children. Because they are still growing, extreme eating habits during these years of life can have a significant impact on life expectancy.
Just another reason to make sure that our kids and teenagers are eating properly and not getting caught up with the skinny hoopla of the day.
Do you think that helping teens understand the long-term effects of malnutrition will make that size zero seem less enticing to them?
