Surprising thing that makes you fat: Your friends
While having close friends generates plenty of health benefits,
research has also indicated that being overweight can be contagious
amongst friends. Research results published in the journal
PLoS ONE
indicated that students were likelier to gain weight friends if they
had friends who were heavier than them, while a study published in
The New England Journal of Medicine
found that having an obese friend increases your chance of obesity by
50 per cent. The good news is being slim can also be contagious, so try
to influence your social group and keep your weight down by arranging
healthy, fun group activities such as walks, bike rides or dance
classes.
Surprising thing that makes you fat: Diet foods
You’ve cleared your cupboards of junk food, stocked up on smoothies
and cereal bars, and now you’re feeling pretty saintly. However, those
seemingly innocent diet foods nestling in your cupboards could actually
be causing you to gain weight. Many foods claiming to be diet-friendly
are actually hidden calorie traps packed with sugar and syrups. In
fact, ‘healthy’ cereal bars can contain as much fat, sugar and calories
as an average chocolate bar. Research by the Texas Health Science
Center at San Antonio also found that those who consumed diet drinks
daily experienced a 70 per cent greater increase in waist circumference
than those who drank none.
Surprising thing that makes you fat: Late nights
Most of us lead busy lives, and this could mean that sleep becomes
a last priority. However, a study by researchers at the University of
Washington found that getting less than seven hours of sleep a night
was linked to a higher body weight. They also found that the longer a
person sleeps, the less impact the obesity gene has on an individual’s
weight. For a quick and easy way to keep off the pounds, try to skip
your favourite TV show or night out every once in a while and catch up
on your sleep instead.
Surprising thing that makes your fat: Your to-do list
As well as causing you to miss out on sleep, having a hectic daily
to-do list can also lead to feelings of anxiety and stress, which can
quickly pile on the pounds. Cortisol – the stress hormone – not only
increases your appetite, but studies have suggested that it can also
affect fat distribution so that it is stored on the abdomen; leading to
an unhealthy ‘apple’ shape. Furthermore, a busy lifestyle can also lead
to erratic eating patterns and a reliance on unhealthy fast foods. Try
to opt for healthy filling snacks instead to fuel your busy day, and
make sure you take some time each day to relax and unwind.
Surprising thing that makes you fat: Food sensitivities
While few of us have serious life-threatening allergies to food,
many people unknowingly suffer from intolerances and sensitivities to
certain foods which can cause a wide range of vague symptoms such as
stomach pain, bloating and skin problems. Shockingly, food
sensitivities could also be to blame if you are struggling to lose
weight. When you eat foods you are sensitive to, this triggers a
reaction in the body which increases levels of insulin and cortisol;
two hormones which increase fat storage, particularly around the
abdomen. Furthermore, our body’s reaction to food sensitivities can
also, ironically, create an addiction to the foods we are sensitive to,
causing us to crave them more.
Surprising thing that makes you fat: Your job
Whether you’re being tempted by staff meeting refreshments,
celebrating a colleague’s birthday with cake and treats, attending
business lunches or being inundated with edible gifts from grateful
patients or parents, your workplace can be a source of constant food
temptation, and there can be a lot of peer pressure to indulge.
Furthermore, if you’re in a job that you don’t enjoy, the temptation to
treat yourself is even higher. According to researchers, 62 per cent of
people break their diets mid-afternoon (with 3.23pm being the time when
you are most likely to give into temptation), and this is generally due
to workplace stress or boredom.
Surprising thing that makes you fat: Exercise
While regular exercise is essential for good health, research has
found that relying solely on exercise to manage your weight can
actually be ineffective. Studies have shown that exercise, when not
combined with dietary changes, does very little in respect to losing
weight. Statistics also show that while obesity levels continue to grow
so do the numbers of people getting active, which shows that exercise
may not be having its desired effect. While exercise itself is not to
blame, experts believe that many exercisers gain weight as they undo
the benefits of their exercise regime by increasing their calorie
intake to fuel or reward their sessions; often overcompensating for
their workouts.
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