Is This Ironic? Or Isn't It?

Isn't sports supposed to make you more healthy?

Well, yes. Playing sports is a healthy activity. Watching sports? Not so much.

So reported the Los Angeles Times yesterday:

Listen up sports fans: Being passionate about sports -- watching it, that is -- can be detrimental to your health. That's the word from a sports medicine research team who conducted a study linking sports fanaticism with poorer health habits.

University of Arkansas, Little Rock, researchers surveyed 515 people and divided the participants into two groups: those who strongly identified with sports and those who did not. They found the avid sports fans tend to eat more fast food, skip breakfast more and ate more fatty foods and fewer vegetables than people who are disinterested in sports.

The sports fans had a higher body mass index than others. And, noted lead author Daniel Sweeney, "The study results also revealed that the more psychologically connected fans are to a team, the more likely they are to consume more alcoholic beverages on the days that they choose to drink than do less excited sports fans."

I'd guess that even darts played at a tavern is more beneficial, health-wise, than watching the NBA playoffs at home.