'Slim by Design': Lose weight by changing your environment
"Small Plate Movement" pioneer Brian Wansink says the key to changing how we eat, is redesigning the common spaces where we eat from schools, restaurants and home kitchens.
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The Current27:30'Slim by Design': Lose weight by changing your environment - Jan 6, 2015
After tracking and scribbling notes on the habits of slim people, Brian Wansink discovered that what's on the kitchen counter can predict what tips the scale. Our project By Design looks at our eating environments and how they influence our eating choices.
All this season, we've been bringing you stories about the power of design to change the world around us. And for this first week of the new year, we're checking out a new theory about the power of design to help with one perennial New Year's resolution. According to Brian Wansink, when it comes to losing weight, you should forget about doing it by dieting, and think about doing it ... by design.
In 2011, the Danish government looked to Brian Wansink's expertise to help make healthy grocery stores on the island of Bornholm. Some suggestions Brian and his group came up with: designing shopping carts with designated areas for fruits and vegetables, one check out aisle that is candy free, fruits bundled into family packs and healthy good aisles that are wider and brightly lit.
Brian Wansinkis the director of the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab. He's also the author of the new book, "Slim By Design: Mindless Eating Solutions for Everyday Life." In it, he argues that it's easier to get slim by changing your eating environment, than by changing your mind. Brian Wansink was in Ithaca, New York.
After hearing this segment, are you going to redesign your eating environment at home? Let us know your thoughts on today's conversation.
Tweet us @thecurrentcbc using #ByDesignCBC. Ore-mail us through our website. Find us on Facebook. Call us toll-free at 1 877 287 7366. .
This segment was produced by Winnipeg's Newtwork Producer, Suzanne Dufresne.
