The increasing number of obese people is becoming a cause of concern for the health officials all around the world. Obesity is not a disease, but it’s a root cause of many diseases. The latest research done by of economists at the University of Warwick and Dartmouth College in the UK, and the University of Leuven in Belgium showed that weight of the people is influenced by the weight of persons around them.

The researchers found out that approximately half of European women and less than a third of European men are overweight. They also claimed that men and women are unconsciously influenced by the weight tendency of the people around them. The researchers named the tendency to gain weight under the influence of their peers as "imitative obesity". The study also found out that job promotions and selection of partners are affected by a person's weight relative to others.

The research showed that education of a person also affects his attitude towards his weight. A person of higher qualification is more conscious about his obesity as compared to person with lower qualification. The society of a person also affects his attitude towards his weight. An obese person doesn’t feel concerned about his weight if he is surrounded by fat people.

Researchers found that attitude towards weight is also affected by sex of a person. European women are more concerned about their weight as compared to men. The women are more conscious about the weight of women around them.

The researchers claimed that this increase in number of obese persons should be seen as a sociological phenomenon not a physiological one. People see their weight in comparison to the weight of the people around them. The researchers concluded, "Although our results should be viewed cautiously, and fixed-effects estimates are not always well-determined, there are some grounds to take seriously the possibility of socially contagious obesity."  

The research emphasized various social factors which define the weight of a person. A person has more chances to gain weight if he is surrounded by obese persons. Women who are surrounded by slim women usually follow various methods to reduce their weight as compared to the women who are surrounded by fat women.