Examining how framing obesity as disease vs. food addiction influences stigma among fitness practitioners.
Obes Res Clin Pract
; 16(5): 429-433, 2022.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36058838
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
To determine if framing the etiology of obesity as a disease, food addiction, or caloric imbalance would increase or decrease anti-fat attitudes (AFA) and challenge the belief that obesity is caused by a lack of personal responsibility or willpower.METHODS:
Two hundred and forty-nine fitness practitioners (Mage = 37.49 years) were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions and asked to read a short article describing obesity as either (a) food addiction, (b) disease, or (c) caloric imbalance, while a control group read an unrelated article. All practitioners then completed a measure of AFA.RESULTS:
Practitioners in the food addiction condition recorded significantly lower AFA than practitioners in the disease condition, specifically on the subscale relating to the belief that obesity is a matter of personal responsibility and willpower, or lack thereof. The differing etiologies of obesity had no impact on fitness practitioners' dislike for people with obesity or their personal fears about gaining weightCONCLUSION:
Presenting the etiology of obesity as a food addiction may be more effective than the disease or caloric imbalance etiologies at reducing obesity stigma relating to the belief that obesity results from a lack of willpower. Such an understanding can help reduce obesity stigma and may encourage governments to implement obesity reduction policies as recommended by organisations such as the WHO.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Dependência de Alimentos
Tipo de estudo:
Clinical_trials
Limite:
Adult
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2022
Tipo de documento:
Article