Starting a relationship is also turning towards some new habits and behaviors. This may become especially clear when we look at the nutritional habits of people in love or, rather, in the perception that these people have about their habits when it comes to eating and taking care of what they eat.
This is the research topic that was addressed by the Spanish Society for the Study of Obesity (SEEDO), which has addressed the relationship between being in a relationship or being single and the repercussions of this on the tendency towards overweight. .
Love makes you fat, or at least it seems that way
To this end, SEEDO carried out a survey study in which 2,314 people participated, the majority of whom were middle-aged women (between 31 and 40 years old). From this population sample, 81% affirmed that there is a correspondence between the existence or not of a relationship the phase through which this relationship goes and the different degrees of weight gain.
Some opinions on food and dating
The results regarding the amount of weight that the people surveyed say vary depending on their romantic situation is, on average, 4.5kg Specifically, 4.5 kg. that they gain by having a partner and a well-established relationship.
The explanations that the respondents have given focus on the opinion that the moment of active search for a partner also implies monitoring eating habits to offer an attractive image, while this need loses importance once a relationship with another person has been formed. .
73% of the people surveyed believe that the overweight factor affects a lot or a lot when it comes to finding a stable partner, while only 38% believe that this continues to be equally or more important when it comes to maintaining a consolidated relationship. Furthermore, 42% admit that during times when they do not have a partner they try to take more care of their diet and eating habits. Along these same lines, 24% of people snack less when they are single, and curiously 47% snack more right after breaking up with the relationship (especially sweet foods, who knows if with a compensatory desire for the reward system that works during the relationship). falling in love and other addictions).
As we well know, when it comes to being overweight, it not only affects what we eat, but also our habits to stay in shape by exercising. When asked about this topic, 33% of the people surveyed claim to practice more sports when they are single, and 35% do less sports once the relationship has ended.
Furthermore, some of the respondents also associate this slight tendency towards overweight to the episodes of stress and worry facilitated by the affair.
Sleep is also no exception to this set of daily changes who are affected by the entry into the scene of a boyfriend or girlfriend. 36% say they sleep a little less when looking for a partner, a percentage that is surpassed by the 44.5% who say they dedicate fewer hours to sleep when breaking up with the other person.
More research is needed!
As almost always and in all topics related to habits and social dynamics. This research was done through surveys, with questions prepared a priori and with little capacity to collect all the subtleties of the opinions expressed therein. Besides, It is possible that there are differences between what the people surveyed perceive and reality That is why in the future we hope to see more studies in which objective data are collected on the relationship between romantic status and obesity.