Overweight & Quality of Life
Weight Loss Life Quality Study Background
Being overweight has broader repercussions than just diabetes, stroke,
heart disease, cancer and arthritis. Overweight can affect quality of
life, according to a weight loss study.
Weight Loss Life Quality Study Method
The University of Wisconsin analyzed health data on nearly 3,000 patients
who were seeing their doctors for a variety of typical medical concerns.
Patients completed a quality-of-life survey that measured items such as
physical functioning, bodily pain, health perceptions and vitality. Patients'
body mass index (BMI) was also measured.
Weight Loss Life Quality Study Results
Overweight and obese patients had significantly lower physical functioning
levels than non-overweight patients. Also, obese patients perceived their
health as worse and had lower levels of vitality than non-overweight patients.
Because of their increased weight, patients with high BMI are more likely
to be limited in basic activities of daily living, including walking several
blocks, bending, kneeling and stooping.
Weight Loss Life Quality Study - Gender
& Racial Differences
Significant racial as well as gender differences were noted among the
overweight study participants. Relative to non-overweight participants,
overweight blacks rated their quality of life as lower than overweight
whites, and overweight women rated their quality of life as lower than
overweight men.
Weight Loss Life Quality Study Conclusion
The effects of obesity on general health perceptions may be mediated in
part by poor self-image, which is exacerbated by negative attitudes of
peers, family members, health professionals and potential employers toward
obese persons, and powerful societal messages to be thin.
Source: The Journal of General Internal
Medicine, a monthly peer-reviewed journal of the Society of General Internal
Medicine, publishes original articles on research and education in primary
care.
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