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Throughout human history, there have been two great, consistent motivators: fear and greed. Greed fueled the Age of Exploration. Fear caused a number of Chinese Emperors and dynasties to finance the construction, reconstruction, maintenance, and upgrades of the Great Wall. Greed fueled the military power that was Rome. Fear fueled the metaphorical fires behind the Inquisition. So it would make sense that, at one point or another, one of these two is going to end up being used as some form of weight loss motivation. Medical science, with all the warnings about the risks of obesity and findings that point to a host of problems linked to being overweight, has clearly fueled fear. Yet, if the data obtained by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention – and counterpart agencies around the world – is any sort of indication, fear isn’t doing too well. So, what about greed? That’s an interesting angle, to say the least. The global economy being what it is, most people that aren’t upper middle class or higher along the social strata will be more than eager to do just about anything for cash. If a recent study is any indication, that includes going on a long-term weight loss program. Yes, ladies, gentlemen, and concerned public health officials, the all-mighty dollar might well be the best weight loss motivation tool you have in your arsenal. The study, published in the Journal for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, found that cash incentives literally worked wonders in convincing people to drop a few pounds in a short period. The study also pointed out that it didn’t have to be a whole lot of money, with some willing to drop a few pounds in three months in exchange for a mere $7. It sounds ludicrous, but the data showed that yes, people were willing to lose weight if a cash incentive was dangled in front of them. The study was conducted through the use of over 200 volunteers, none of whom received any sort of help from the researchers. In essence, they were left alone to lose weight on their own, in whatever manner they chose – so long as it was not a surgical procedure. The basic idea given to them was that the more weight they lost, the more money they would be given. The average was an estimated five pounds in a matter of three months, with a group being given the aforementioned $7 incentive managing an average of three pounds a month. The study found that the higher the financial incentive, the more likely that people would lose weight. In the test, the group that had been given $14 incentives experienced the most improvement, with most of them losing up to 5% of their total bodyweight. This may not seem like much, but when one considers how many pounds a person fails to lose due to lack of weight loss motivation, it starts to add up. There are a few things to keep in mind, however. There still isn’t enough data to show what the optimal combination of dollar amount and pounds lost would be to maximize the effectiveness of the strategy. The data is also strictly in the short-term, which means that further research is needed to see if it would work for the long-term, and whether or not incentives would help keep people from putting the weight back on.
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Harvey Ong is a part-time writer and part-time creative, currently employed by an online media and advertising company. He is interested in philosophy,history,psychology,criminology,toxicology,pharmacy,and sociology.He is also an avid collector of porcelain figurines.Want receive Updates regarding our Products,Promos and Freebies visit Free NewsletterSubcribe us at our Weekly Newsletter and you will receive updates Online Drug Store
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