Can Weight Gain Be “Contagious”?
(2 comments)
We all know that friendship is a powerful thing, but now researchers have found that it can even affect our waistlines.
Research published in the
New England Journal of Medicine suggests that obesity can actually “spread” from one friend to the next. Researchers from Harvard and the University of California, San Diego, found that if your friend becomes obese, your likelihood of becoming obese rises by 57%. If several mutual friends become obese, your risk jumps to 171%. Even friends who live hundreds of miles apart can have this type of “weighty” impact on each other. Experts theorize that this may be because, when we see a friend gain weight, it changes our perception of what’s acceptable for our own bodies.
The good news is that slimming down appears to be “contagious” too. Researchers noticed that people who were
not obese were closely connected to other people with similar body weights.
So now you have another great reason to keep exercising regularly and eating right: It’s not only good for you but also for your friends.
2 Comments
I definitely agree with this article. It is so easy to be influenced by those around us in many ways. Staying healthy and making the right choices are decisions we have to keep making to ourselves each day, regardless of what those around us are choosing to eat or able to eat.
Posted at
9:47 PM
December 30 2007
by
ms2770,
Barnhart MO'
Geez! Someone actually gets paid for this? Article is imcomplete and barely scratches the surface. Stands to reason overweight friends are consuming more than they're moving, thus you adapt the same habits hanging out with them. When the only thing you do is get together and eat, watch movies or play video games it doesn't leave much room for expending energy. Commom sense!!
Posted at
2:28 PM
January 3 2008
by
treesitter,
Clinton OH'
