Next time you want to lose weight, try watching a nail-biting thriller.

Researchers have found that more exciting a show is, the less likely women are to binge on calorie-laden food, The Daily Mail reports.

A dull show, on the other hand, increases the risk of gorging on unhealthy snacks by 52 per cent.

Scientists from Uppsala University in Sweden studied 18 women, analysing them as they snacked and watched a range of different programmes.

The women were shown an 'engaging' episode of a popular Swedish comedy show, reported Prevention.com, as well as a 'boring' art lecture.

As a control the scientists also monitored bingeing habits while the women took part in another 'boring' activity - reading a text on insects living in Sweden.

Their findings revealed that boring content increased a women's propensity to snack on unhealthy foods.

While watching 'dull' shows, the women taking part binged on 52 per cent more food than during the 'entertaining' comedy programme.

And the trend held up across different media, the researchers found.

The findings have prompted the team of scientists to question whether it is in fact how exciting or engaging the TV we watch is, rather than the act itself, that causes a person to eat more.

'At very low levels of engagement, you kind of eat to engage yourself because you’re bored,' said Aner Tal, a research associate at Cornell University’s Food and Brand Lab.

But he said the key is to ensure you choose healthy snacks while settling on the sofa for a night in front of the TV.

He added: 'Use pre-portioned snacks as opposed to endless bowls.

'That means keeping the source of food out of sight, too.

'If you know you have a tendency to overeat while watching TV just snack on something that’s better for you. Have veggies as a snack instead of chips.'