Like yawning, obesity is contagious — if those around you gain weight, it's more likely you will too. But that bleak fact has a silver lining: the effect also works in reverse, meaning you're likely to lose weight if someone else does first.
That’s the finding of a new University of Connecticut study that tracked the weight loss progress of 130 couples over six months. The researchers found that when one member of a couple commits to losing weight,the chances were good the other partner would lose some weight too, even if they were not actively participating in a weight loss intervention.
“When one person changes their behavior, the people around them change … How we change our eating and exercise habits can affect others in both positive and negative ways,” said study leader Amy Gorin, a professor who studies environmental and social factors influencing weight loss, in a statement.
In the study, approximately one third of the untreated partners lost 3 percent or more of their initial body weight after six months despite not participating in any active intervention. A three percent loss of body weight is considered a measurable health benefit.
But how is this possible?
The researchers suggest that the rate at which couples lose weight is interlinked. In other words, if one member lost weight at a steady pace, their partner did too. Likewise, if one person struggled to lose weight,their partner also struggled. This is because we change our eating and exercise habits can affect others in both positive and negative ways. On the positive side, spouses might emulate their partner’s behaviors and join them in counting calories, weighing themselves more often, and eating lower-fat foods.
Whether a weight loss ripple effect might extend to other family members who share a household and not just couples remains to be seen. Gorin said that will be the focus of another study.
So go out and create a ripple effect of your own! Be the ripple effect not only in your relationship but also your family, workplace, social group... Make sure not only to be the drop that falls in the water but be a rock creating waves instead of ripples.
