FitMethod

The New England Journal of Medicine has found that obesity is contageous! In an article in Time Magazine, statistics from the NEJM are cited that show that one is more likely to gain weight and become obese if those around them are also overweight.

This does not surprise me, as usually the people that we associate with have the biggest influence on us. We are well aware of the dangers of peer pressure, and though subtle, this is just another example of it. I have read that everyone in Jessica Alba’s family is overweight and so she had to start cooking for herself at the age of 12 to escape the clutches of obesity. What she did is remarkble, and unfortunately, is not the norm. Therefore, as this study shows, if our society has any chance of fighting obesity, it must fight it as a whole. It is a social problem that requires a social solution.