Americans eat while walking down the street, snack in front of the television, grab a bite in the car, gobble food at their desks and munch midnight snacks while lying in bed.
Is it any wonder that this nonstop noshing is helping to expand waistlines nationwide?
'"People say, 'I can't understand why I gain weight because I hardly eat anything,'" says Marvin H. Berenson, clinical professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at USC's School of Medicine. "But if they look at what they are eating, they will find that they are eating a lot more than they think they are."
For this reason, we should all try to engage in "mindful eating" at least once a day. There's no rocket science here. It begins with paying attention to portion sizes and "being mindful not just about food but also about your body," says Debora Burgard, a psychologist in Los Altos, Calif. "It means being aware of when you are hungry and of your stomach as it is actually becoming satisfied so that you know how to make a decision about when to stop eating."
Think a little mindless eating--a cookie here, a slice of cake at the office, a handful of candies--can't add too much? Think again. Studies show that the typical overweight American underestimates daily caloric intake by up to 40%. On a 2,000-calorie diet, a typical amount recommended for many adults by the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, that works out to an extra 800 calories a day and adds up 5,600 calories a week, or about enough to pile on almost a pound per week.
Here's what experts recommend:
* Rev up before coming to the table. That's right, instead of rushing to eat, do one to three minutes of brief exercise just before sitting down to the table. "Do anything at all," says Berenson, author of "The Five Keys to Permanent Weight Control" ($16.95; 2002). "Take a little walk, swing your arms, go up and down the steps." Just a minute or two of exercise, he says, "increases blood flow to the muscles, away from the stomach, and actually decreases appetite." Yes, it's only temporary, but it's a way to ease into eating.
* Savor the flavor. Take the time to enjoy food. Focus on what is being consumed. Guilt--especially about eating so-called "bad" foods--fuels a lot of fast overeating. "Instead of sitting down and saying, 'I'm going to have two chocolate chip cookies and really enjoy them,' people often eat 10 cookies quickly, don't taste the stuff and wind up being full and unsatisfied," says Tracy Sbrocco, a psychologist and weight-control researcher at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md.
