‘Heavy metal’ has taken on a whole new meaning, according to UK tabloid newspaper the Daily Star.
Under the headline ‘Metal Makes Us All Heavy – Loud rock linked to craving fatty foods’, the paper reports that the type of music we listen to may dictate what foods we eat, and subsequently, the size of our waist line. The Daily Star story, accompanied by a photo of Lordi, claims that heavy metal fans have a greater affinity for snacking on fattier foods.
The newspaper article was picked up by the British talk show Jeremy Vine on 5, with guests on the May 10 edition of the show musing over the question “Does listening to heavy metal make you fat?”
Allegedly, the ‘science’ behind this story suggests that heavily distorted, noisy, fast tempo music gets listeners in the mood to feast on similarly hefty meals, or “bosh a kebab”. In comparison, it’s suggested that hearing soothing classical music or light jazz may cause the brain to encourage listeners to make ‘sensible, moderate’ dietary choices.
As the British talk show hosts discussed the topic, co-anchor Storm Huntley speculated over her relationship between her own music taste and eating habits, stating, “I’m kind of R&B-pop. That doesn’t make me want to have a salad. Nothing seems to make me want to have a salad.”
“I don’t think AC/DC would be your thing,” Vine suggests, going on to state, “It just could be one of these classic things that very large people are drawn to heavy metal music rather than the other way round” before concluding “The music that makes us want to have a salad, we’ve yet to discover.”
Thankfully, this absurd topic wasn’t given too much attention, but you can watch the discussion at the very end of the Jeremy Vine episode.
In a curious footnote, the last time the Daily Star ran a story on heavy metal, on April 10, it was under the headline ‘Heavy metal fan loses eight stone by dancing to favourite tunes’, which would seem to imply that listening to metal can actually make you thinner.
So, er, maybe take this story with a pinch of salt, whatever your dietary habits may be.
