Two studies have recently shown how weight and friends are significant factors in decisions made to mold our futures.

Study in Sociology of Education

The July 2007 issue of Sociology of Education states that if obese students had a negative experience in high school, they were less likely to attend college. [Coco Masters, TIME, time.com, July 24, 2007]

Most educators and parents are likely to state the following for determining school success:

• Poverty
• Single-parent home
• Alcoholic homes
• Drugs
• Domestic abuse
• Chronic illness

Obesity has not been considered a factor for attending college. However, this study shows that it is a strong factor.

Boys vs. Girls

• Girls were only half as likely to attend college if obese.
• Boys were just as likely to attend college if obese.

This study written at the University of Texas at Austin by sociologist Robert Crosnoe states that the self-image of girls is linked to weight. Boys are less likely to have their confidence be affected by weight.

The Weight Factor

Overweight students, especially girls, are

• Teased
• Ostracized
• Isolated by peers
• Treated differently by teachers and parents

Crosnoe states that it does not seem to matter if the negative thoughts about weight are real or perceived. The student views are negative and can lead to

• Alcohol consumption
• Drug use
• Failure in school
• Truancy
• Suicidal thoughts

"They are just unhappy at school and it does things to them in the present that have long-term consequences," says Crosnoe. However, the study states that if 20% or more of the high school student body is obese, the effect is less and the girls are more likely to go to college than in high schools with thinner populations. [Coco Masters, TIME, time.com, July 24, 2007]

Study Statistics

Crosnoe collected data from 11,000 adolescents from 128 schools starting in 1994. He found

• Self-rejection in obese girls was 63% higher than for non-obese girls.
• Class failure was 24% higher than with their non-obese counterparts.

"Currently, 17% of U.S. adolescents are overweight. This is double what it was in the 1980s says Don Beauregard, co-chair of the National High School Association.

Crosnoe’s upcoming book, Fitting In, Standing Out, will focus on social aspects in education.

Second Study

A new study in the New England Journal of Medicine has found a new factor in obesity—friends. "If your close friend becomes obese in a given time interval, there’s triple the risk that you will follow suit," says Nicholas Christakis, a co-author of the study published at Harvard Medical School." [Mary Carmichael, msnbc.msn.com, Newsweek, July 25, 2007]

The Stats

What are the risks of increasing obesity from people around you?

• Sibling—40%
• Spouse—37%
• Friend—57%
• Same gender friend—71%
• Very close friends—171%

This study includes 12,067 subjects participating in the Framingham Heart Study since 1971. There is a surprise in this data. Neighbors seem to have no influence at all. Zero effect. So the study, which was very enlightening, does demand answers to new questions:

• Why are same-sex friendships and relationships so much more influential over weight than male-female friendships are?
• Where does the ripple effect stop?
• Does the same dynamic apply to other behavior-related health problems, such as drinking, smoking and risky sexual behavior?

Perhaps, the studies may suggest that the best way to lose weight or work out is to get your best friends to join you? The studies also validate the need to stop bullying in schools for yet another reason.

Related articles: Recess Becoming Obsolete, Suicide and MySpace, Bulimia, Cutting

Read previous articles on Educational Issues.

Copyright article 2007 Barbara Pytel. All Rights Reserved.