Social Ties Can Make You Fat?
Public health officials are all a ‘twitter over a study from Harvard Medical School and the University of California that shows a strong correlation between friends and family when it comes to who will become overweight, obese or stay slim.
It’s not as simple as it sounds. Friends who live far away have as much impact on your weight as local friends or family members with whom you actually hang out. And the effect is transferred more easily between members of the same sex. In other words, if you’re a woman, and your brother is obese, that’s not as likely to impact you as if your sister is. In fact, if your friend of the same sex becomes obese, you are 57 percent more likely to become obese; if it’s your sister or brother, 40 percent. And, surprisingly perhaps, spouses have the least impact, but still increase your risk by 37 percent.
Since obesity in the U.S. has more than doubled in the last 25 years, public health officials are desperately seeking solutions to the problem, which brings with it a host of health problems. To realize that when one person is helped, a whole social network of people may also benefit, is great news.
So if it’s not that you’re out together having pizza and beer with your friends and family, (since distance doesn’t count) what is the mechanism at work?
It seems that when you are close to someone who becomes overweight or obese, you become more accepting of that condition in yourself, which can lead to behaviors like overeating, poor food choices, alcohol consumption or not getting enough exercise, because you’re just not as concerned about it. Same goes for thin friends —you may pick behaviors that favor thinness.
The research took into account age, genetics and environmental influences and reports a direct causal relationship between overweight and obese friends and family.
So does that mean you should ditch your portly friends or avoid fat family members at holidays? Of course not. But you can be more aware of how your weight is slipping and how you are becoming more comfortable with your burgeoning waistline, receding belt notches or increasing dress sizes.
While genetics do play a role in weight gain as you age, genetics are not the deciding factor. Your brain and feelings are at work here too. And that’s something you can have some control over. It may be inspiring for you to realize, if you’re about to embark on a weight management program or make lifestyle changes, that you may not have to say a word of encouragement to your friends or family members. Just being successful could have a very positive impact on those you care most about.
