Dataset Information

Association between weight bias internalization and metabolic syndrome among treatment-seeking individuals with obesity.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Weight stigma is a chronic stressor that may increase cardiometabolic risk. Some individuals with obesity self-stigmatize (i.e., weight bias internalization, WBI). No study to date has examined whether WBI is associated with metabolic syndrome.

Methods

Blood pressure, waist circumference, and fasting glucose, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were measured at baseline in 178 adults with obesity enrolled in a weight-loss trial. Medication use for hypertension, dyslipidemia, and prediabetes was included in criteria for metabolic syndrome. One hundred fifty-nine participants (88.1% female, 67.3% black, mean BMI?=?41.1 kg/m² ) completed the Weight Bias Internalization Scale and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9, to assess depressive symptoms). Odds ratios and partial correlations were calculated adjusting for demographics, BMI, and PHQ-9 scores.

Results

Fifty-one participants (32.1%) met criteria for metabolic syndrome. Odds of meeting criteria for metabolic syndrome were greater among participants with higher WBI, but not when controlling for all covariates (OR?=?1.46, 95% CI?=?1.00-2.13, P?=?0.052). Higher WBI predicted greater odds of having high triglycerides (OR?=?1.88, 95% CI?=?1.14-3.09, P?=?0.043). Analyzed categorically, high (vs. low) WBI predicted greater odds of metabolic syndrome and high triglycerides (Ps?ConclusionsIndividuals with obesity who self-stigmatize may have heightened cardiometabolic risk. Biological and behavioral pathways linking WBI and metabolic syndrome require further exploration.

SUBMITTER: Pearl RL

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5300503 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Association between weight bias internalization and metabolic syndrome among treatment-seeking individuals with obesity.

Pearl Rebecca L RL Wadden Thomas A TA Hopkins Christina M CM Shaw Jena A JA Hayes Matthew R MR Bakizada Zayna M ZM Alfaris Nasreen N Chao Ariana M AM Pinkasavage Emilie E Berkowitz Robert I RI Alamuddin Naji N

Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.) 20170201 2

<h4>Objective</h4>Weight stigma is a chronic stressor that may increase cardiometabolic risk. Some individuals with obesity self-stigmatize (i.e., weight bias internalization, WBI). No study to date has examined whether WBI is associated with metabolic syndrome.<h4>Methods</h4>Blood pressure, waist circumference, and fasting glucose, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were measured at baseline in 178 adults with obesity enrolled in a weight-loss trial. Medication use for hyp ...[more]

PMID: 28124502

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Project description:Weight stigma typically focuses on suggestions that people with overweight and obesity are incompetent and immoral. Integrating so far unconnected lines of research, the current research presents two studies that examine the motivational relevance of these aspects of weight stigma. Specifically, we tested the proposition that people with overweight and obesity respond differently to the public viewing them as incompetent compared to immoral, as these aspects of weight stigma differ in reparability. We expect that threats to competence are more acceptable and thus related to a constructive response that is more effective in losing weight in the long-run. By contrast, we propose that threats to morality elicit an acute urge to defend one's moral image, thereby prompting responses that are more visible to the social environment, but potentially less effective for losing weight. Study 1 experimentally compared exposure to weight stigma focused on morality vs. weight stigma focused on competence in a sample of adults with overweight and obesity (N = 122; M BMI = 31.89, SD BMI = 4.39). We found that when exposed to weight stigma focused on morality, people with overweight and obesity respond by defending their moral social-image but that this is less effective for encouraging weight loss, while exposure to weight stigma focused on competence led to an increased likelihood of engagement in weight loss behaviors. Complementing and extending the findings, Study 2 (N = 348, M BMI = 26.78, SD BMI = 6.78) tested the notion that internalized weight bias predominantly revolves around moral concerns, and thus will lead to less self-determined behavioral regulation. We found strong support for the moral core of weight bias internalization. In line with our predictions, greater weight bias internalization was associated less self-determined and more other-determined regulation of dieting and exercising. This suggests that weight bias internalization operates as a facilitator of maladaptive behavioral regulation following weight stigma, contributing to lower psychological functioning and well-being of people with overweight and obesity. The current research presents novel findings about the underlying mechanisms of weight stigma and weight bias internalization and identifies strategies to avoid maladaptive and facilitate adaptive health behaviors.

Dataset Information

Association between weight bias internalization and metabolic syndrome among treatment-seeking individuals with obesity.

Objective

Methods

Results

Publications

Association between weight bias internalization and metabolic syndrome among treatment-seeking individuals with obesity.

Similar Datasets

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