A study of 2,000 Americans finds that 88 percent of adults are eating with their faces glued to the front of some screen.
Molly Kimball, a registered dietician with Ochsner Fitness Center, says she only likes one thing about 'zombie eating.'
"I really like calling it that, because that is what it is. People are ' zombieing out' with the TV, with their phones, with the and computer and they may eat an entire meal and they're not even tasting it."
"They can reach the bottom of the bowl, end of the plate, end the bag...and they've got no idea what it tasted like or had any satisfaction from it," says Kimball.
She says we become so preoccupied with the screens that we don't really realize what we're doing. And, she doesn't see that as a very healthy habit. "I think that mindless eating is 'zoning out' and a huge factor for over-eating, because we don't have that emotional, psychological satisfaction from the food we eat." And, she says that's likely to have us eating more.
The study found that 91 percent of Americans watch TV while eating a meal or snack, nearly half saying they do so regularly. And, on average, Americans will only have five "screen-free" meals a week.
And, talk about preoccupation...83 percent of those surveyed admitted they've had their meals go cold while deciding what to watch.
While TV is the major culprit, phones and laptops take their toll as well. In fact, the average American will look at their phone more than twice during every single meal...another thing that Kimball, doesn't like.
"No, I think it's a bad thing. I think it's a sign that we're not slowing down. That's not very good. And, even if they're not 'zombie eating,' completely zoning out, they're being rude, quite frankly."
How bad can it get? The study found 86 percent of those polled have found themselves so busy and preoccupied with their screens that they've forgotten to eat altogether. Kimball doesn't think she buys that.
"I think there are very few people who really forget to eat. I think most people wish they'd forget to eat."