Wanna keep your diet on track? A computerized scale might help. No. It’s not a scale you STAND on – it’s one that measures your meals! It’s called a MandoMeter. It’s a computerized scale with a plate on top. You fill the plate with whatever you want – hopefully, healthy portions of protein, complex carbohydrates and vegetables. Then, the computer calculates how much the plate weighs and re-calculates with every mouthful how quickly you’re eating your meal. If you pick up one forkful too many, the computer asks, “Are you still hungry?” If you eat too quickly, the computer will tell you to stop - and periodically announce when you can have your next bite. The computer can also display how full you should feel based on normal eating patterns.

In a recent study, testers preferred the machine to one-on-one diet counseling, because they didn’t feel like they were being judged – and it wasn’t a person telling them what to do. It also works! Just ask Laurence Willshire. He’s a British teen who went from ingesting a full meal in 3 minutes to taking almost 16 minutes to eat and losing 56 pounds in the process.
                                                                                                            The MandoMeter also helps people with eating disorders, like anorexia. The computer starts patients out with really small meals and gradually increases portion sizes as treatment progresses. The computer also lets patients know how much they should be eating to gain or maintain weight. That way, they gradually learn to feel the same fullness signals that a normal person feels. If you’d like more information about the computerized food-weighing system, check out the website MandoMeter.US.