Want fries with instead of that?
According to a new study out of Duke, it turns out that you are more likely to eat the least healthy item on a menu if that menu has at least one really nutritious option.
“Because the healthy option is there, it somehow satisfies this healthy eating goal in them and then they felt liberated to sort of go crazy and choose something really, really bad for them,” [said] Dr. Gavan J. Fitzsimons … Furthermore, people with high levels of self-control were actually more likely to make indulgent choices when offered a healthy option than people who didn’t keep such a tight rein on themselves. Further experiments demonstrated that more restrained people indeed unconsciously acted as if they had fulfilled their health goals by considering a healthy choice.
This is exactly why I agreed to buy my own Elliptical Trainer. I got sick of actually exercising.
