Orange County Register

We don’t keep an estimated 80 percent of the New Year’s resolutions we make. But what if the person you want to change come Jan. 1 isn’t yourself? Many of us worry about unhealthy behaviors in a friend or loved one. John Sciacca, dean of health sciences at Cypress College, offers the following advice for helping a friend or relative adopt a better lifestyle.

• Don’t pressure or nag. Gently raise awareness on the problem and the benefits of change.

• Find ways to make healthy eating and exercise fun.

• Prepare tasty, low-fat meals.

• Listen to concerns and mixed feelings. Apologize if you’ve nagged or pressured in the past.

• Offer compliments and positive reinforcement.

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