Exploiting Social Networks to Mitigate the Obesity Epidemic

• Published in: Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) Vol. 17; no. 4; pp. 723 - 728
• Main Authors: Bahr, David B, Browning, Raymond C, Wyatt, Holly R, Hill, James O
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.04.2009
• Subjects: Behavior; Body Mass Index; Computer Simulation; Health Behavior; Health care; health education; Humans; ideal body weight; Interpersonal Relations; Intervention; lifestyle; Majority rule; nutrition education; nutrition information; Obesity; Obesity - prevention & control; Obesity - psychology; Overweight; pandemic; psychosocial factors; psychotherapy; public health; risk factors; Simulation; social environment; Social networks; Social Support; Socioenvironmental Therapy; Trends; Weight control; weight control programs; Weight Loss; United States > US; Colorado

Despite significant efforts, obesity continues to be a major public health problem, and there are surprisingly few effective strategies for its prevention and treatment. We now realize that healthy diet and activity patterns are difficult to maintain in the current physical environment. Recently, it...