What we tend to do when we fly that often stays with us:
Bottom Line: Here's a new one for you. Oxford University just discovered that English people who fly overseas consume nearly two days worth of calories getting here. In the recently published report it's estimated that the average person flying overseas from England consumes an estimated 3,400 calories during the flight!
Researchers found that due to one's dulled sense of taste and smell due to altitude, cabin pressure and even the noise of the flight - that people are inclined to consume far more than normal. Researchers also believe that nervous eating can contribute to the caloric intake. Here's my takeaway...First American obesity rates are currently at 68.8% of the adult population. The current English obesity rate is 62%. So...while we don't have research on Americans flying - what are the odds that the scientific findings of the human condition don't apply equitably to us? Moreover 6.8% more Americans are already obese implying that if anything it's likely that we're even worse.
But let's step away from two days worth of calories being consumed on the average trans-Atlantic flight for a moment. How likely are we to take in too many calories on domestic flights as well for the same reasons? I'm reminded of a piece of research from years ago on weight loss. It stated that for the average person who consumes at least one desert per week - simply reducing consumption of one desert per week would result in average weight loss of 1 pound per month, or 12 pounds per year. Apply that principal...even if you only fly occasionally - simply being an average consumer of calories while flying could result in significant weight gain. Minding the store calorically when flying might be a somewhat less intrusive way to dramatically reduce weight over time.