A FRIEND or partner could be worth their weight in gold when it comes to dieting, according to a new study.

A survey of 1,750 men and women in the UK found that 89 per cent of them had lost more weight when they teamed up with another person, compared to going it alone. The figure for the West Midlands was even higher at 91 per cent.

People in the west midlands lose on average eight pounds when they diet with a friend compared to an average of six pounds when they did it alone and said dieting with a buddy was the best way to do it as they can motivate each other.

The survey was conducted by OnePoll from January 16 to 19 on behalf of Seasonal Berries - a year-round campaign that celebrates the seasonality of soft fruits. It is funded by British Summer Fruits, an organisation representing 98 per cent of berries supplied to UK supermarkets.

In the West Midlands 63 per cent of people preferred to diet with their husband or wife while just eight per cent said they would do it with a work colleague. Chocolate and crisps are the ultimate diet breakers for people in the West Midlands.

Some of those surveyed nationally said one of the reasons why it helped to diet with another person was because they could make a plan of action and support one another when they were tempted to eat unhealthily.

A spokesperson for Seasonal Berries said: “Eating healthily doesn’t have to be a chore and the most important thing is that you find what works best for you. This can be eating healthy with a friend to help motivate you and also finding snacks that taste great and are healthy too.

“Berries are the ideal food to snack on, they are versatile and naturally sweet so can help with sugar cravings during the day.”

An hour after the snack, participants were told to eat a pasta dinner until they were "comfortably full and satisfied".

When participants had eaten the sugary snack they were found to consume nearly 20 per cent more food at dinner than those who had eaten a handful of berries, according to the results.

When volunteers snacked on berries they consumed, on average, 134 calories fewer at dinner.

From the results, scientists estimated that people switching from an afternoon confectionery snack to mixed berries might expect to reduce their energy intake by 938 calories a week on average.

Given that one pound of body fat is equivalent to around 3,500 calories, this reduction in daily energy intake would probably produce a loss of approximately one pound of body fat a month - or a stone in a year.

Seasonal Berries has now launched the Snack Smart berry challenge, in an effort to help change Britain's snacking habits and improve the nation's health. The challenge involves swapping a typical afternoon confectionery snack with a handful of berries daily. For more details go to http://www.seasonalberries.co.uk/snack-smart