Life with a Twist by Mare_Petras

“I don’t understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine’s Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon.”

- Author Unknown 

Speaking of Valentine’s Day, will you be my Valentine, realbuzz friends? Multiple studies show that having wellness-conscious, healthy-active living friends in your corner increase the chances that you will obtain and maintain your healthy living goals. The latest publication of Fitness Journal provides compelling research suggesting that the friends you choose can be major weapons for or against the battle of your bulge.

Check out these statistics drawn by the global Edelman Health Barometer survey regarding the relationship between your health and social life:

• Forty-three percent of those surveyed said friends and family have the most impact on personal health lifestyle.
• Thirty-six percent reported that close social ties have the most impact on personal nutrition.
• About two-thirds said they had attempted to change a negative health habit, yet half failed to sustain the change, citing “a lack of ongoing support” as a contributor. 

Consider these three scenarios:

1. Your best friend starts taking “barre” classes -- and as a result, looks fabulous. You sign up, immediately!

2. You want to become a vegetarian or eat raw, yet you talk yourself out of it because you worry that your “different” eating habits may ostracize you as a dinner guest.

3. You decide to reduce your intake of sweets, and your boyfriend consciously (or unconsciously) sabotages your efforts by bringing your favorite ice cream home.

Friendships can provide a powerful source of inspiration, support, and recognition, and they can also undercut you efforts. The Framington Hart Study (2007) that followed 12,067 participants over thirty-two years found that a person’s chances of becoming obese increased by 57% if a friend became obese.  These probabilities increased among friends of the same sex – 100% increase for guys and 38% increase for gals.

Although this study doesn’t specifically identity contributing factors, some believe “social norms” are the miscreant.  Social norms are rules (unspoken or otherwise) -- regarding exercise and eating habits, as well as acceptable body size –that are reflected within our immediate social and familial circles.  Others feel that “social modeling,” which is our tendency to mimic the actions of those around us, stimulates healthy (or unhealthy) behavior.

Moreover, mimicking behaviors of someone you respect and like is thought to enhance bonding.

A Few Social/Health Engineering Takeaways:

Remember that size matters! People that have large (and strong) social networks tend to enjoy strengthened immune systems and better mental health. Social networking sites such as realbuzz encourage participating in forums and blogging about your successes and challenges – all excellent ways to get and provide like-minded support from and to a larger network.

Carefully choose your dining partners. Dining partners subconsciously model each other’s eating style. Normally light eaters, eat more when dining with heavier eaters; slow eaters eat quicker when dining with fast eaters.

Set an example, yourself.  Not only can you change your own behaviors, your healthy living habits can influence those you love. It’s worth noting that wellness professionals (like me) may help foster good health, but are less influential than family and friends – who are in it for the long haul.

How about you realbuzz friends? Do you see social norms or social modeling as health-influencing factors?  Have you ever been influenced to (or not to) order that extra glass of wine or slice of cheesecake because of your dinner partner’s choices? Or are you the influencer?

Until next time . . . a healthy-bonding Mare