Weight bias among dietitians: does the weight status of the patients change the dietary approaches? / Viés de peso entre os nutricionistas: o status do peso dos pacientes altera as abordagens dietéticas?

ABSTRACT Objective Since obesity is a multifactorial disease, some health professionals may esteem that weight control is a matter of personal willpower and stigmatize individuals. These weight-based attitudes seem quite common even among dietitians. This study aimed to determine whether the level of weight bias affects the dietary approaches of the dietitians. Methods Two hypothetical cases with obese and normal weight vignettes were created to be evaluated, and the explicit weight bias was assessed by the fat phobia scale among 99 dietitians via an online questionnaire. Results The majority of the dietitians demonstrated mild or moderate levels of weight bias (59.6% and 32.3%, respectively). The obese vignette had the highest agreement for nearly all adjectives and was perceived as having poorer diet quality, general health status, and insufficient physical activity level. Conclusion Overall, as weight bias is a concerning issue among most dietitians, necessary steps are required for the reduction of prejudice and thus protect the patients from stigmatizing attitudes.

RESUMO Objetivo Visto que a obesidade é uma doença multifatorial, alguns profissionais de saúde podem defender que o controle de peso é uma questão de força de vontade pessoal e estigmatizam os indivíduos. Essas atitudes baseadas no peso parecem bastante comuns mesmo entre os nutricionistas. Este estudo teve como objetivo determinar se o nível de viés de peso afeta as abordagens dietéticas dos nutricionistas. Métodos Dois casos hipotéticos com vinhetas de obesidade e peso normal foram criados para serem avaliados e o viés de peso explícito foi avaliado pela escala de fobia de gordura Fat Phobia Scale entre 99 nutricionistas por meio de um questionário online. Resultados A maioria dos nutricionistas demonstrou níveis leves ou moderados de viés de peso (59,6% e 32,3%, respectivamente). A vinheta de obesidade teve a maior concordância pela maioria e foi percebida como tendo a pior qualidade da dieta, o pior estado geral de saúde, e níveis de atividade física insuficientes. Conclusão Em suma, sendo esta uma questão que preocupa a maior parte dos nutricionistas e um problema que continua a afetar tantas pessoas, é urgente a criação de medidas que permitam diminuir o preconceito e proteger os pacientes de atitudes estigmatizantes.

The association of fat preference with eating behavior and sex: Turkish version of the Fat Preference Questionnaire©.

The fat content of food may play a role in food preferences. Increased fat intake has a role in elevated body weight. Firstly, we aimed to establish the Turkish version of the Fat Preference Questionnaire© and secondly to evaluate the relevant factors with dietary fat preference including body mass index (BMI); sex; and subscales of the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ). The study was conducted with 261 participants among the academic staff of Yeditepe University. The Fat Preference Questionnaire© and TFEQ were applied. After the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Fat Preference Questionnaire©, Pearson's correlation coefficients were calculated to reveal the relationship between the scores of the Fat Preference Questionnaire©, BMI, and the four subscales of TFEQ. Weakly or moderately correlated variables were selected to perform two sets of hierarchical regression analyses. Turkish version of the Fat Preference Questionnaire© had statistically acceptable validity and reliability. Fat preference did not correlate with BMI (p > .05). Women showed a lower preference for high-fat foods and a higher dietary fat restriction (p < .05). The two subscales of TFEQ, the Disinhibition of Eating Control and the Susceptibility to Hunger, contributed to explain the variances in fat preference and dietary fat restriction (ΔR 2 = .04, p < .05). Fat preference correlates with Disinhibition of Eating Control and Susceptibility to Hunger, while fat restriction correlates only with Disinhibition of Eating Control although none correlates with BMI. Turkish version of the Fat Preference Questionnaire© is a valid instrument for further studies.