Overweight teenagers have overweight friends and parents, who in turn may influence them to remain heavy, according to a new study from RTI International.

Teens and their friends were likely to be close to the same weights, regardless of their socio-economic status, smoking status, and household characteristics. Overweight girls, in particular, were more likely to have overweight friends. The researchers used data on children in the seventh to 12th grades that had been collected during the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

Dr. Justin Trogdon, the author of the study, said the results help to explain why so many more teenagers remain overweight.

This study appears in the Journal of Health Economics.

Labels: families, influences, peers