November 11, 2008

Could obesity be contagious?

Recent research by Professor David Blanchflower, who sits on the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee, and Professor Andrew Oswald, an expert on the economics of wellbeing say that obesity could in fact be contagious.

Although this research may come from a rather unorthodox source, it seems that their point could be valid. They claim that the country’s waistline expands as people try to compete with each other.

We have seen over the years that some people buy a new TV or car in order to keep with their neighbours and family, the same can be applied to the way that they eat. As they see or hear what other people are eating, they too feel that they need to do the same.

It is a good gauge to see how the state of the economy is coping with the current climate, obviously, as things get tighter then is stands to reason that the national weight would reduce and so on.

Source [Guardian]