Obesity is Socially Contagious

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Here at Shapespot, we encourage exercising and dieting with your friends for the fun, camaraderie, and motivation that come with having a healthy buddy. But a recent study has shown that there’s an additional reason to enlist your friends in your healthy living plans: obesity is “socially contagious”.

A University of California – San Diego study shows that mutual friends almost triple each other’s obesity risk: if one friend becomes obese, the other friend’s chances for also doing so increase by 171%. Though there is no definitive evidence as to why this is, researchers postulate that when one friend gains weight, s/he changes the norm of what is an appropriate weight. A sort of subliminal psychology, an obese friend allows you to think that larger sizes are normal.

The upside to these findings are that you have a greater chance of losing weight if your friends are losing weight. As you work as a team to lose weight, you encourage your friends both cheering them on and by leading through example. Likewise, if your friends are dropping sizes, you’ll feel motivated and eager to follow suit.

When you choose to diet and exercise with a friend, plan it out in advance. What food plans will work best for you, what are your exercise styles, and how do your schedules look? It make take a little extra effort to coordinate, but now you have proof that it’s worth it.

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