Friends, Family Could Be Making You Fat

I think there's a video included, apologies for the local news website, that's where I found it.

http://kutv.com/health/health_story_206210413.html

Jul 25, 2007 6:02 pm US/Mountain
Friends, Family Could Be Making You Fat

(CBS News) Here's some food for thought: If you're watching your weight, you may not be getting by with a little help from your friends. Dr. Jon LaPook has more on a study released Wednesday that says when someone packs on the pounds, his or her close friends and relatives often do the same.

For all of us looking for another excuse for putting on a few pounds, we've got a whopper.

"Obesity spreads through friends and through spouses and through siblings," says James Fowler of the University of California, San Diego.

The study says obesity has become a "socially contagious" disease — spreading person to person almost like a virus.

Among married couples, when one spouse becomes obese, the risk to the other increases by 37 percent. For siblings, the risk rises 40 percent.

So, while everyone might have gotten a good laugh watching "The Nutty Professor" say "that certain people are genetically predisposed to gain weight," the joke may have been on us.

Nobody knows this better than Keisha and Shavon Brown, two sisters who used to be a bad influence on each other.

"When I said I didn't want to work out," says Shavon, "she said she didn't either, and we would stay home."

Lazy lifestyles and super-sized portions are partly to blame. But researchers say it's also because we look at our friends for an idea of normal body size.

"If the social norm is to be at a higher weight, then other people accept their body weight at a higher level," says Dr. Lou Aronne, a specialist on weight loss and obesity.

The study also found the strength of the relationship also matters.

Among casual friends, when one becomes obese, the risk for the other increases 57 percent. For close friends, the risk nearly triples.

The good news is that this research suggests if friends can help you get fat, they should also be able to help you get thin — for example, by sharing time at the gym together instead of sharing a cheeseburger.

The Brown sisters did just that. With the guidance of their life coach, they are eating healthier and working out more.

So far, they have lost 40 pounds combined. So either follow their example, or keep your heavier friends close — but your thinner enemies closer.


(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

I just read something similar on MSN. I think it's bunk. If you're letting your friends influence you this much, maybe you need to re-evaluate your friendship. I have my own willpower to work out, I don't need my fatass friends dragging me down.

You would be suprised how much you are influenced by society even without knowing it.

Some people are more succeptable (I don't think I even came close to spelling that right,) to it than others, of course, but it's pretty damn hard to not be influenced by society in any way, because most of the time you don't even know it's happening.

For instance, most women are constantly looking for what "normal" is for their bodies. When the majority of people are fat, normal starts shifting in that direction, and it becomes more acceptable to be fat in society.

I've always said it needs to stop being acceptable. In this day and age we're told that the fat kid is just like everyone else, but he's not, he's a fatass and we're told that's alright so nothing gets done about it.

Society sometimes has the effects of subliminal messaging to some extent. But I thought that all that was mainly coming from Hollywood? How we're supposed to be paper-thin and what not. I think obesity can easily be blamed on just the mere presence of food in America, and our culture. I know Europe is mostly health conscious, but looking at the statistics, most of America are not.

That's exactly what I mean, "America" isn't health conscious. It's kind of a group think type thing, for a lot of people.

One of the most basic things you learn in psychology is when everyone around you is doing something, it makes it right in your mind to do it as well.

For example, at sports games when people start going nuts and go on the field and beat the shit out of people. Once the first person starts it, it's like a chain reaction and everyone else thinks they can do it too and it's fine.

I never understood why jocks went nuts after winning games. Only thing I can remember when my soccer team won districts was drenching coach (my dad) with a couple tubs of water, almost like when most football teams win. I just never understood the jumping up and down and acting like a complete nuisance, unless they were making fun of druggies at a rave.


I try to be somewhat health-conscious. The only thing I've had fast food for two weeks was a Crunch-Wrap Supreme and some potato wedges from KFC-Taco Bell. Only reason was, my mom didn't want to go any place else, and we had to get a bunch of cleaning done. I wish streets had fruit vendors, or fruit vending machines that kept them extremely fresh until you get it.

Taco Bell is actually a pretty healthy fast food place. I worked there for a year and a half, ate there everytime I worked, and I didn't gain a pound. I weighed a good, healthy 160. Now that I've got an office job and I sit on my ass all day, I weigh 180. Gay.

I completely agree. I have a friend that goes to the gym with me...and when she's not in the mood Its way harder for me to go. . Plus I've got Kaneda sitting there saying "ok, babe...but I thought we'd play video games or watch a movie and spend time tonight...but do whatever you want..." *insert love me face*...ugh. lol.

You both should be competitive runners.

I wish streets had fruit vendors, or fruit vending machines that kept them extremely fresh until you get it.

As long as the fruit was kept in deep cool this would be possible. The chef where I work recently threw out some apples he'd had stored in a cooler for 12 months, a full year. They were the green skinned type of apple, and they look exactly like you'd get them from the supermarket. No blemishes.

I completely agree. I have a friend that goes to the gym with me...and when she's not in the mood Its way harder for me to go. . Plus I've got Kaneda sitting there saying "ok, babe...but I thought we'd play video games or watch a movie and spend time tonight...but do whatever you want..." *insert love me face*...ugh. lol.

I wish my counterpart was as motivated as I am to go to the GYM, but it's usually somewhat late when I get off work, so it's harder when she wants to go, and most of my friends go during the day, so I don't really feel like going by myself :-\

It's that simple? I thought you might have to add some preservative, but if it would be the same temp as a coke machine that would be great. Cold fruit is delicious.

A lot of our fruit is genetically "enhanced" so I guess it's possible.

That's exactly what I mean, "America" isn't health conscious. It's kind of a group think type thing, for a lot of people. One of the most basic things you learn in psychology is when everyone around you is doing something, it makes it right in your mind to do it as well. For example, at sports games when people start going nuts and go on the field and beat the shit out of people. Once the first person starts it, it's like a chain reaction and everyone else thinks they can do it too and it's fine.

Herd mentality for the win.

All it takes really is a little observation to spot when you're doing something because other people are doing it, and to decide if it's something you actually care to continue doing.

It's odd at what's acceptable and normal and how much it's changed during time. It's also odd to note how people's tastes change too with time. At one point a woman with meat on her bones was more desirable because it meant she was well-fed and could possibly offer a good dowry.

Yep, I remember reading about how women tried to make themselves fatter to be more desirable, and I kinda chuckled.

In 400 more years, I wonder what the trend will be?

Yep, I remember reading about how women tried to make themselves fatter to be more desirable, and I kinda chuckled. In 400 more years, I wonder what the trend will be?

In some cultures this is how it is! Not everyone in the world is concerned with the asinine shit we Americans are.

I think that meat is good...haha .

Africans prefer a plump woman.

I prefer women with meat as well. I don't like looking at a pair of boobs and seeing ribs dude, and who the hell lets other people influence them? I played sports and not once joined in on any fights, my friend came over and I still did my full workout while he was here even though he said he didn't want to do it!

But the thing that pisses me off the most is when people try to blame food! How about you look at yourself and say FATASS DONT TOUCH IT! Huh?! I eat all sorts of shit and I still weigh 345 pounds and only 18% of that is fat! Why don't you learn to control your own body before you start pointing fingers? Learn how to strengthen your own willpower. I swear no wonder no one can make it through school...you all lack willpower!