Being a fan of a bad NFL team doesn't just make you depressed; it can also make you fat.
That's what a new study published in the journal Psychological Science suggests, at least.
Researchers examined food consumption of fans in NFL cities the day after games and found that fans tend to choose unhealthier foods following a loss by their home team.
“Although prior studies had shown that sport outcomes influence reckless driving, heart attacks, and even domestic violence, no one had examined how they influence eating,” the lead author of the study said.
Researchers discovered fans on a whole eat 16 percent more saturated fat the day following a loss. No word on whether these fans are choosing greasy foods to combat the hangover caused by excessive drinking the night of the loss.
Perhaps not coincidentally, the five highest cities on Forbes' list of most obese cities in America with NFL franchises are Detroit, Jacksonville, Nashville, Kansas City and San Diego. When was the last time any of those cities celebrated a Super Bowl victory (or even a playoff berth)?
