'Fat shaming' doesn't encourage weight loss

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
10-Sep-2014

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Contact: Harry Dayantis
h.dayantis@ucl.ac.uk
44-020-310-83844
University College London
@uclnews
'Fat shaming' doesn't encourage weight loss

Discrimination against overweight and obese people does not help them to lose weight, finds new UCL research

In a study of 2,944 UK adults over four years, those who reported experiencing weight discrimination gained more weight than those who did not. On average, after accounting for baseline differences, people who reported weight discrimination gained 0.95kg whereas those who did not lost 0.71kg, a difference of 1.66kg.

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"There is no justification for discriminating against people because of their weight," says lead author Dr Sarah Jackson (UCL Epidemiology & Public Health). "Our results show that weight discrimination does not encourage weight loss, and suggest that it may even exacerbate weight gain.

"Previous studies have found that people who experience discrimination report comfort eating. Stress responses to discrimination can increase appetite, particularly for unhealthy, energy-dense food. Weight discrimination has also been shown to make people feel less confident about taking part in physical activity, so they tend to avoid it."

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