Association Between Weight, Weight Perception, Weight Teasing and Mental Health Among Adolescents

Overview

Journal Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health

Publisher Biomed Central

Date 2024 Mar 24

PMID 38521915

Authors

Wenxin Gu

Xiaoyan Yu

Yinliang Tan

Zhiping Yu

Jingfen Zhu

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Adolescent mental health problems are becoming increasingly prevalent, and there are correlations between weight-related concerns and adolescent mental health. The aim of this study is to explore the association between three weight-related factors (actual weight, weight perception, and weight teasing) and mental health problems (depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and loneliness) in Chinese adolescents.

Methods: 10,070 adolescents between the ages of 11-18 from schools in Shanghai, China were selected using a stratified random cluster sampling method. Self-reported questionnaires were collected to investigate weight-related factors and mental health problems. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationship.

Results: The prevalence of depressive symptoms, loneliness, mild anxiety symptoms, and moderate to severe anxiety symptoms among adolescents were 18.0%, 53.8%, 26.5%, and 12.3%, respectively, with a higher prevalence found in females. After adjusting for weight perception and weight teasing, actual weight had no harmful impact on adolescents' mental health. Adolescents' perception of being overweight increased the risk of depressive symptoms, loneliness, mild anxiety symptoms, and moderate to severe anxiety symptoms, while the perception of being underweight had a similar but more profound impact (depressive symptoms OR = 1.590, 95% CI: 1.342-1.883; loneliness OR = 1.537, 95% CI: 1.353-1.746; mild anxiety symptoms OR = 1.368, 95% CI: 1.178-1.589; moderate to severe anxiety symptoms OR = 1.780, 95% CI: 1.449-2.186). Experiencing weight teasing more than once a year had a greater effect on adolescents' mental health, especially among adolescents with overweight/obesity (depressive symptoms OR = 2.970, 95% CI: 2.325-3.793; loneliness OR = 3.839, 95% CI: 3.119-4.727; mild anxiety symptoms OR = 2.822, 95% CI: 2.236-3.562; moderate to severe anxiety symptoms OR = 5.212, 95% CI: 3.846-7.065).

Conclusions: The prevalence of mental health problems among adolescents was high, especially loneliness. Weight perception and weight teasing, but not the actual weight, independently influenced adolescent mental health.

Citing Articles

Body Weight Perception and Other Factors Associated with Overweight and Obesity in U.S. Adolescents.

Shah G, Karibayeva I, Shankar P, Mason S, Griffin J Children (Basel). 2025; 12(2).

PMID: 40003273 PMC: 11854347. DOI: 10.3390/children12020169.

Weightism in Asia: A Narrative Review and Implications for Practice.

Mathialagan S, Lau P J Obes Metab Syndr. 2024; 33(4):314-325.

PMID: 39689897 PMC: 11704224. DOI: 10.7570/jomes24033.

Association Between Maternal Weight Perception Before and During Pregnancy and Postpartum Depression Status in Southern China.

Zhang Q, Qiu M, Guo L, Li Y, Xie Z, Yang W Nutrients. 2024; 16(21).

PMID: 39519529 PMC: 11547851. DOI: 10.3390/nu16213696.

References

Hards E, Loades M, Higson-Sweeney N, Shafran R, Serafimova T, Brigden A . Loneliness and mental health in children and adolescents with pre-existing mental health problems: A rapid systematic review. Br J Clin Psychol. 2021; 61(2):313-334. DOI: 10.1111/bjc.12331. View

Lin C, Strong C, Latner J, Lin Y, Tsai M, Cheung P . Mediated effects of eating disturbances in the association of perceived weight stigma and emotional distress. Eat Weight Disord. 2019; 25(2):509-518. DOI: 10.1007/s40519-019-00641-8. View

Carapeto M, Domingos R, Veiga G . Is the Effect of Body Dissatisfaction on Depressive Symptoms Dependent on Weight Status? A Study with Early-to-Middle Adolescents. Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ. 2021; 10(4):1020-1034. PMC: 8314315. DOI: 10.3390/ejihpe10040072. View

Lim H, Wang Y . Body weight misperception patterns and their association with health-related factors among adolescents in South Korea. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2013; 21(12):2596-603. PMC: 3690154. DOI: 10.1002/oby.20361. View

Choi Y, Hong J . Association between Weight Status and Mental Health among Korean Adolescents: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study. Children (Basel). 2023; 10(4). PMC: 10137249. DOI: 10.3390/children10040620. View

Warkentin T, Borghese M, Janssen I . Associations between weight-related teasing and psychosomatic symptoms by weight status among school-aged youth. Obes Sci Pract. 2017; 3(1):44-50. PMC: 5358070. DOI: 10.1002/osp4.87. View

Saeedzadeh Sardahaee F, Kvaloy K . Cross-sectional study of BMI, weight concern, body size perception, dieting and mental distress in adolescents: The HUNT Study. BMJ Open. 2022; 12(4):e045962. PMC: 9020309. DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2020-045962. View

Pan X, Wang L, Pan A . Epidemiology and determinants of obesity in China. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2021; 9(6):373-392. DOI: 10.1016/S2213-8587(21)00045-0. View

Su-Jung N, Jong-Ho P . The moderating effect of gender on the relationships between obesity, well-being, and stress perception in Korean adolescents. BMC Public Health. 2021; 21(1):1859. PMC: 8518173. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-021-11894-3. View

10.

Desbrow B . Youth Athlete Development and Nutrition. Sports Med. 2021; 51(Suppl 1):3-12. PMC: 8566439. DOI: 10.1007/s40279-021-01534-6. View

11.

Schvey N, Marwitz S, Mi S, Galescu O, Broadney M, Young-Hyman D . Weight-based teasing is associated with gain in BMI and fat mass among children and adolescents at-risk for obesity: A longitudinal study. Pediatr Obes. 2019; 14(10):e12538. PMC: 6728169. DOI: 10.1111/ijpo.12538. View

12.

Thurston I, Sonneville K, Milliren C, Kamody R, Gooding H, Richmond T . Cross-sectional and Prospective Examination of Weight Misperception and Depressive Symptoms Among Youth with Overweight and Obesity. Prev Sci. 2016; 18(2):152-163. DOI: 10.1007/s11121-016-0714-8. View

13.

Jung F, Luck-Sikorski C . Overweight and Lonely? A Representative Study on Loneliness in Obese People and Its Determinants. Obes Facts. 2019; 12(4):440-447. PMC: 6758716. DOI: 10.1159/000500095. View

14.

Ozdemir A, Turkben H . The relationship between weight self-stigma, depression and loneliness in people with obesity. Afr Health Sci. 2024; 23(3):696-704. PMC: 10862624. DOI: 10.4314/ahs.v23i3.80. View

15.

Hammami N, Patte K, Battista K, Livermore M, Leatherdale S . Examining the role that weight perception and social influences have on mental health among youth in the COMPASS study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2022; 57(8):1671-1684. PMC: 8767527. DOI: 10.1007/s00127-022-02219-9. View

16.

Twarog J, Politis M, Woods E, Daniel L, Sonneville K . Is obesity becoming the new normal? Age, gender and racial/ethnic differences in parental misperception of obesity as being 'About the Right Weight'. Int J Obes (Lond). 2016; 40(7):1051-5. DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2016.40. View

17.

Cooper K, Hards E, Moltrecht B, Reynolds S, Shum A, McElroy E . Loneliness, social relationships, and mental health in adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. J Affect Disord. 2021; 289:98-104. PMC: 9310699. DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2021.04.016. View

18.

Wroblevski B, Lucas M, Silva R, Cunha M . [Relationship between body dissatisfaction and mental health of Brazilian adolescents: a nationally representative study]. Cien Saude Colet. 2022; 27(8):3227-3238. DOI: 10.1590/1413-81232022278.16302021. View

19.

Drosopoulou G, Sergentanis T, Mastorakos G, Vlachopapadopoulou E, Michalacos S, Tzavara C . Psychosocial health of adolescents in relation to underweight, overweight/obese status: the EU NET ADB survey. Eur J Public Health. 2020; 31(2):379-384. DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/ckaa189. View

20.

Puhl R, Lessard L . Weight Stigma in Youth: Prevalence, Consequences, and Considerations for Clinical Practice. Curr Obes Rep. 2020; 9(4):402-411. DOI: 10.1007/s13679-020-00408-8. View