Recent studies have revealed that obesity is contagious, in a sense that if you are friends with people who are obese then you are way more likely to become overweight or obese yourself.
Right now in American over 33% of the population are obese and it is strongly believed that in 40 years time this figure will rise to 42%. A person will fit into this category if they have a BMI of more the 30.
Having all this excess weight can cause so many weight related illnesses such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and high cholesterol, not to mention the depression and low self esteem it can cause. It is also believed that a massive 17% of all medical costs are blamed on obesity!
So now that you have some of the facts relating to this weight epidemic, lets take a closer look at the findings of the study that was carried out to determine whether being overweight is contagious among friends.
Study Findings
The findings where that if you had four obese friends, it made you 50% more likely to become over weight yourself compared to people who had no obese friends.
So basically the more overweight friends you have the higher your chances are of gaining excess weight yourself. Although the researcher know this is true, they don’t know exactly why it’s true!
They can only guess its down to picking up your friends bad eating and lifestyle habits. It is also a fact that if your sitting at a table where one person finishes their meal, your more likely to finish your's also.
However if you where sitting at a table with someone who didn’t finish their meal you would more or less do the same thing meaning you eat less. This could also be another reason for the studies findings.
Another factor that causes the trend among friends is the fact the bigger friends don't have as much energy as friends who are slim and more active. This means hanging out with them probably will mean eating meals out, going to the cinema and other sedentary activities that usually involve eating food.
Lets face it our culture celebrates with food. At a christening celebration there is normally a big buffet laid out, at family celebrations there is always a meal to celebrate, so this along with the lack of activity that goes along with them is a huge problem factor!
The whole contagious thing is also very relevant to families. If the mother or father is obese, chances are the kids will be to. It seems to be a never ending cycle that only a healthy diet and exercise will break!
How to Avoid Become a Statistic
You can get help with losing your excess weight by using an effective diet product of even joining a slimming class such as weight watchers. This will prevent you from becoming a part of the obesity epidemic statistic.
Phen375 in particular is an excellent pills that is the best selling fat burner all over the world as it gives user excellent results with the average person losing 3-5lb in one week.
You could also do more physical activity with your unfit friend. The fact is that if you have someone to do these things with you will more likely stick at them, enjoy them better and eventually they will be a normal part of your life and no longer an effort!
Try perhaps even trying to lose weight together, like mentioned above join a slimming class or a gym. You could even have competitions between you's to see who can lose the most weight. This makes it a little more fun and with a competitive edge makes it more intersting while also helping you stay motivated and determined.
Basically having a BMI over 25 is classed as being overweight and this just isn’t healthy, so it is in your best interest to try and reduce your weight as this will also reduce your risk of developing weight related health conditions and from spreading the seemingly contagious problem to friends and family members!