New research from Duke has shown that eating with a skinny person who has a high metabolism can actually lead you to eat more than can eating with other people--even if your companions (skinny or non) eat the same amount. Let me explain.

There were two groups. One group watched a skinny person take some candy from a bowl. The other group watched a heavier person (actually the skinny person in a fat suit made by a Hollywood movie company) take some candy from a bowl. In reality, both the skinny person and the heavier person took the same amount of candy. The people who watched the skinny person both took and ate more of the candy.

In opposition to what you might be thinking, the results aren't suggesting that obesity is the fault of those people who don't have to watch their weight. The implication is simply this: WE NEED TO STOP TAKING OUR EATING CUES FROM OTHER PEOPLE.

Here's my magical three-step weight loss solution.

1. Eat less food than your body requires to maintain its current weight.
2. Remember step 1.
3. Don't forget step 1.

It's math. To gain weight, you must consume more calories than you need. To lose weight, you must consume fewer calories than you need. I'm not saying it's easy--we're surrounded by easy calories, and many people have intervening factors (i.e., genetics, health conditions, etc.)--but I am saying that it's not only possible, it's a mathematical certainty.