There are many data, and the traffic of the different metropolises changes. But there is a constant. Let’s spend a good part of our day sitting behind the wheel. Some time ago, a Moovit study found that Italians employ about 52 minutes a day in the journey between home and work. And then, even without taking into account the search for the parking lot, one wonders what happens to those who have to stay several minutes in the queue, further lengthening their stay in the passenger compartment.
However, there is an aspect that perhaps we do not consider. When in the evening, to return, we put ourselves in the usual traffic jam, it is often easier for us to avoid going home for the meal and stop at a fast food. Maybe to consume a very caloric dinner in a hurry and also rich in fat.
Result? In the long run the diet may not be exactly healthy. The hypothesis, which combines traffic and healthy power datacomes from a research that appeared on the Journal of Urban Economics and conducted by the experts of the University of the Urban-Champign Illinois. The study examined the county of Los Angeles. But it makes us think of us too.
How much the delay on eating habits weighs
Be clear. It is not that every day they are on the traffic jams that literally make “losing” dinner time. But the delay impacts. And how. As the author of the research Becca Taylor, “unexpected delays of traffic in addition to usual congestion, led to an increase of 1% of fast food visits, notes in a note from the University. It may not seem very much, but is equivalent to 1.2 million more visits to fast food per year in Los Angeles county alone. We describe our results as modest but significant in terms of potential change in non -healthy food choices “.
The time at risk
The researchers coordinated by Taylor have crossed the data relating to the modeling of daily motorway traffic for more than two years in Los Angeles with those of users of smartphones located inside fast food in the same period of time. There was therefore a model that associates the two situations, even showing almost a cause-effect relationship Between tilt traffic with consequent slowdowns and visits to the premises that offer food quickly. All this, considering both 24 hours and specific times during the day.
Think: about 30 seconds of delay for Mile is enough (and we reflect how much one kilometer tail could count), to increase visits to fast food by 1%. When the researchers divided the day into segments lasting one hour, they discovered a significantly greater number of visits to fast food when traffic slowdowns occurred during The evening peak hour. At the same time, as could be expected, you tend to do less than the shopping in the evening. In fact, always monitoring the movements detected through the position of the smartphones, there was a decrease in access to supermarkets in traffic evenings.
In short, as the Taylor concludes, “If there is traffic between 5 and 7 in the eveningwhich happens right at dinner time, we see an increase in fast food visits. Motorists have to decide whether to go home and cook something, stop first at the supermarket or simply eat fast food “.
More attention to infrastructure
The connection between traffic and health choices, which perhaps favor the dictates of Mediterranean nutrition and above all allow to focus on a lighter dinner for a better rest and a more effective one Fight against overweightThey would therefore be significant. And reducing the congestion on the road could prove important not only for the air control that we breathe, but also for our diet. Mite the negative effect of the queues, also through a greater availability of public transport, could therefore be useful. Also for a healthier diet.
