Weight bias internalization and beliefs about the causes of obesity among the Canadian public
Authors: Vida Forouhar
Affiliations
1 Department of Health, Kinesiology and Applied Physiology, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
2 School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
3 Replica Communications, Kristianstad, Sweden.
4 Department of Health, Kinesiology and Applied Physiology, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. angela.alberga@concordia.ca.
5 Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. angela.alberga@concordia.ca.
Description
CONCLUSIONS: Weight bias internalization is prevalent among Canadians across all body weight statuses, and the public endorses behavioural causes of obesity, namely physical inactivity and overeating, more than its other causes. Findings warrant the reinforcement of efforts aimed at mitigating weight bias by educating the public about the complexity of obesity and by highlighting weight bias as a systemic issue that affects all Canadians living in diverse body weight statuses.
Keywords: Internalized attitudes; Obesity; Public beliefs; Public health; Stigma; Weight bias;
Links
PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37620795/
DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-16454-5