Trying to adopt a more healthful lifestyle? Don't follow the crowd, instead find a new one

Restaurant dining can derail your healthy eating plans.

Welcome to the Disease Prevention book club.

Eat for Health is Dr. Joel Fuhrman's nutritional prescription for superior health. Dr. Fuhrman's argument for why we do the things we do is thought provoking and can be applied to many areas of our lives, not just to eating. Automatic behavior, the things we do without thinking, plays a big part in whether or not we are able to adopt healthful habits and stick with them.

Are you looking for social acceptance by acting -- eating and drinking -- the way others do? When you "do like the Romans do"  you may be jeopardizing your health.

"We all want to fit in," Dr. Fuhrman explains. If we predict that we will feel  uncomfortable eating differently than the group of others who determine our social status, subconsciously, we may also feel that others will reject us. This irrational response can be an obstacle to change. "Following the crowd does not lead to enhanced status or self-respect and it is unfortunate that an unhealthy lifestyle and a disease-causing diet gains the psychological advantage," Dr. Fuhrman concludes.

To satisfy our innate need for social acceptance, positive lifestyle changes are more easily made and adhered to when we surround ourselves with people who have the same health-related beliefs as we do. When we have support and receive encouragement to make these difficult changes, we are more successful. People who have strong relationships with others who believe that both they have control over their health and how they act will determine their longevity and happiness, come out on top.