COLUMBIA, S.C. — Social media can help you lose weight. That's what researchers with the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health found.
"We found when people were interacting on Facebook with one another in between our face to face meetings, about every ten posts, likes, comments they would do on Facebook was associated with losing one pound," says Dr. Brie Turner-McGrievy, associate professor. "So, the more they interacted, the more weight they lost."
Joining Facebook groups can help keep people accountable throughout their weight loss journey.
"It's being reminded that you need to stay healthy," says Dr. Turner-McGreivy. "It's having other people be able to support your weight loss goals and have a place that you can ask questions and get feedback on what you're doing."
As important as exercise is in someone's weight loss journey, it's even more important to have the right diet, especially over the holidays.
"People tend to gain at least a pound or two over the holidays," says Dr. Turner-McGrievy. "You may lose a little of that, but that's where we see this sort of weight gain that comes over each year. So, it's really a time when we tell our study participants focus on maintain, don't gain."
Dr. Turner-McGrievy says it's okay to eat some of those holiday sweets, just in moderation.
For more information on the Behavioral Research in Eating Lab, click on the link here.