Neon lighting makes you fat and frigid

If you've recently started a new job and noticed that your sex drive has diminished and that your appetite has increased, it's probably not your imagination, a new study says.

A new Argentinian study has found that women who work in neon-lit spaces pick up an average of 2 kg per year, and that there is marked decrease in their sexual appetities.

"We were initially going to do our study on weight gain and sedentary office work, when we noticed that there was a marked correlation between weight gain and those workers who worked in neon-lit offices", according to lead researcher Dr Pedro Sirocco, from the Sao Paolo Institute of Workplace Research.

The study participants
The study, spanning seven countries in South America, involved 3 011 women, all of whom were office workers in corporations that employed more than 50 workers. None of these workers had been in their jobs for more than five years and all were between the ages of 20 and 30. Only 21% of them had any tertiary training.

The detailed questionnaire included questions on working conditions, private life, sexual habits, social habits and diet.

"One of the junior data processors picked up the correlation between the presence of neon lighting and weight gain," according to Sirocco. "On further processing of the data, it was also found that those working in offices where there was no natural light, had sex only half as often as their counterparts who either worked outdoors or in offices that had natural lighting.

Link to stress
"This obviously requires further investigation, but it is thought that there might be a connection between large corporations (housed in big office buildings with modern lighting) and the presence of canteens, that are generally known for serving large helpings, often of very unhealthy food. But the constant flickering of the neon lighting is also suspected of interefering with hormonal levels in younger women", said Sirocco.

"We also surmise that there might be a link between diminishing libido and the stress levels experienced when working for big corporations that have neon lighting, and, for instance being outdoors picking apples."

"But these are merely premises and will be investigated when additional funding comes through," according to Sirocco.

Three lighting companies companies contacted by Health 24, declined to comment. And so they should, because it is, after all, April Fool's Day.

(Sources: whopper.com)

(Susan Erasmus, Health24)