Study: Women Packing On Pounds Due To Less Time Doing Housework

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A new study says women may be gaining weight because they're doing less housework.

CBS 2's Cindy Hsu has the skinny on the controversial study.

It's tough to find anyone who loves housework.

"Drudgery, total drudgery!" said Upper West Side resident Jill Ocean.

A study out of the University of South Carolina said women are packing on the pounds from less time cooking, cleaning and doing laundry.

The study said in 1965 women spent nearly 26 hours a week on housework. By 2010, the numbers were cut in half to 13 hours a week.

Some said it's even less than that.

"Probably 10, 8 or 10," said Siobhan Kirby, of Midtown.

"Maybe three total. Laundry maybe, a little cleaning, some cooking once a week maybe," said Brandi Goldstein, of the Lower East Side.

"I would say two hours at the most and my husband does a lot. He does the laundry," said Meg Holt, of the Upper West Side.

When it comes to television, the study said women watched about eight hours a week back in the '60s. These days that time has doubled.

Fitness expert Tracey Mallett, however, said weight has a lot more to do with what we eat than the chores we do around the house.

"The food that we're eating, the portions of the food that we're eating, that's a big proponent of it, not because we're doing less housework," said Mallett.

Mallet said it's also about getting active -- no matter what you do.

"They feel like exercise in general that they've got to go to the gym, they've got to exercise for an hour and you don't, you can be at home pop in an exercise DVD," said Mallett.

And if you are a couch potato, Mallett joked you could do some workouts during commercial breaks or in between shows.

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