Diet : Contagious Weight Gain
If you’ve been putting on weight, you might want to tell your friends and family to watch out. New research indicates that you’re more likely to become obese if you see your friends and family gain weight. For example if you have a sibling who becomes obese your risk for obesity goes up 40 percent. If it’s a close friend who gains weight, your risk increases to 57 percent. And, it doesn’t matter if your friend lives across the street or across the country. The closeness of the relationship is more influential than the physical distance between people. Researchers think that obesity can spread like this because people begin to accept obesity when they see it in their own friends and family. For more information on ways to maintain a healthy weight or to find a physician, call St. John’s Referral One at 625.2000 or visit stj.com.
When it matters most, think St. John’s.
