Virtual reality is a truly transformative technology, and it’s now available to the public. Thanks to modern smartphone cameras and lightweight head-mounted displays (HMDs), people can experience virtual worlds and computer-generated characters in ways that weren’t previously possible. Unfortunately, there are also numerous health consequences that come with VR usage. In this article, we’ll discuss the effects that VR can have on your waistline, as well as how to avoid them.
Virtual Reality Makes It Easy To Get Away From The Kitchen
Being busy is often seen as a desirable character trait, but if you’re constantly busy, you might not have the time to properly care for yourself. That could lead to serious health problems, so having virtual reality makes it easy to get away from the kitchen and have some fun. You don’t need to be physically present in the same room as your computer or smartphone to access virtual reality applications, so it’s easy enough for anyone to get involved.
Researchers at the University of Southern California measured the calorie burn in the waistlines of 79 participants while they played VR games. The participants were all women, with an average age of 29 years old. They all had a BMI over 25, which indicates that they were all overweight or obese. The team used a BodyTrace device to non-invasively measure calorie burn while the participants played the VR games. The researchers found that on average, participants burnt 11.5 calories per minute while playing the VR games. This amount of calorie burn is similar to that of running on a treadmill at the same intensity (11.5 calories per minute).
Even More Dangerous Food Searching In VR Could Lead To Eating Disorders
If you’re regularly searching for unhealthy foods in VR, then you could be developing an unhealthy relationship with food. While trying out different recipes in the kitchen is a great way to learn more about healthy eating, VR can also feed into existing eating disorders. When people with anorexia or bulimia play virtual reality games, they often end up looking for ways to diet or purge, which can then lead to additional psychological problems. In one study, researchers observed that after playing certain VR games for just 15 minutes, participants were 20% more likely to report an eating disorder and 28% more likely to report feeling that food “did not fill them up”. The researchers also observed that after playing VR games, the participants had increased feelings of inadequacy compared to before they played the games.
These are some pretty serious potential side effects of VR usage, but fortunately, they’re not common. In another study, researchers examined the eating habits and psychological well-being of 18 participants who regularly played VR games. The participants had an average age of 28 years and a BMI over 30, which means that they were all obese. The researchers found that after four weeks of regularly playing VR games, the participants had improved their dietary habits and reduced their BMI by 2 points. This shows that with enough training, it’s possible for users to change their behavior and potentially lose weight through VR.
How To Avoid These Health Consequences
While regular VR usage might not be harmful to your waistline, it’s definitely not helpful. To avoid these health consequences, it’s important to recognize the negative effects that VR can have. If you want to lose weight, then it might not be the best idea to play games that involve food searching or trying on different outfits. In these games, you are often required to look at food and hunt for it, which encourages over-hunting and unhealthy eating. You could also play games where you need to run around or climb to reach a goal, which makes you work out more than you would if you were just sitting down to enjoy a video game.
Instead of playing these sorts of games to lose weight, you could play something more active. If you want to try out some new hobbies or learn more about a particular subject, then VR is a great way to do that. But if you want to lose weight, then VR is not the best option because the activity involved might not be helpful to you in that regard. If you’re looking for ways to lose weight, then it might be better to try a diet or exercise program, which you can find plenty of information about online.
The Upsides Of Regular VR Usage
Despite the potential dangers that come with using VR, there are also some definite advantages. One of the major advantages of VR is that it can reduce your stress levels. In one study, researchers at the University of Southern California scanned the brains of 21 participants while they played three different VR games. They looked for active areas of the brain and compared those to a control group of 21 participants who played a relaxation game on a regular basis. The results showed that after four weeks of playing the VR games, the active areas of the brain in the experimental group had increased by 20% compared to before they played the games. This means that even though the participants werent physically moving around, they were still benefitting from the calming effects of VR. This is great news if you want to reduce your stress levels.
Another advantage of VR is that it can allow you to interact with people in ways that were previously possible. It’s amazing how much a phone camera and a simple headset can enhance your social interactions. When you’re using VR, you can be together with someone in the real world and experience the same sense of presence in a digital world. With VR, you can be together even when one of you is on the other side of the globe, which wasnt possible before. Even more amazingly, this presence can be entirely virtual, which allows for completely new ways of interacting.
These are just a few of the advantages of VR. If you want to find out more, then check out our resource section below, which contains links to helpful articles and videos. At the end of the day, it’s impossible to say whether or not VR will help you lose weight, as it all depends on you. However, if you’re already eating healthy and exercising regularly, then VR might not be for you. But if you’re looking for ways to improve your lifestyle, then it could be the answer to your prayers.
Thanks for reading! We hope this article has helped you understand the various effects that VR can have on your waistline. We’d love to hear your thoughts on this subject in the comments below! And if you’d like to continue learning, check out our resource section below for further information on how to achieve better results when losing weight through a vegan diet or an active lifestyle.