SUPERMARKETGURU FOOD &
HEALTH WEEKLY NEWSFLASH!
Will a Plate that Talks Help You Eat Less?
Published on: December 12, 2006
We've all asked ourselves "How much food is too much?" Oh well, might as well eat what's on the plate, after all that's what mom insisted that we did. Now, there just might be a solution to help you eat less. Dr. Hryhory Chausovsky, a senior lecturer at Zaporizhia University in Ukraine, recently demonstrated his invention - a talking plate that lets you know when you overload your plate ... and not politely either.
The plate is 15 centimeters (about 6 inches) in diameter and is connected to a palm-sized computer. If the plate is loaded with food beyond a preset weight, you'll hear the plate say, "Where's your willpower?" or "Stop right there! And what about excess weight?"
For the musically inclined, another plate has a sensor built in which will play music each time an eating utensil touches the plate. How does this help? Well, "If the utensil strikes are too rapid, the plate will play fast and aggressive music while if the person eats more slowly, the music will be calmer and less stressful," Chausovsky said. So, to enjoy your meal in peace, you must eat slowly.
Too embarrassed to bring the plates along with you out to dinners? Well, Chausovsky also has a belt that monitors the expansion of your stomach and has a discreet alarm that alerts the wearer when the belt is stretched to its maximum preset.
Not just limited to the dining room, another tool is a contact magnet and recorder connected to a refrigerator door. Every time the refrigerator door is opened you'll hear, "Are you here because you are really hungry, or is it just your emotions?"
Feel yourself unable to control your eating because of those delicious smells wafting through the air? Chausovsky has another invention for you: jewelry that emits a perfume which will mask the smell of food, thus reducing the impulse to eat.
You might have heard of Chausovsky before. One of his more famous inventions was a musical condom with a built-in motion detector allowing sex partners to vary the music played with the intensity of their love-making. Ron Popeil better watch his back.
