The relation between weight-based teasing and psychological adjustment in adolescents
To determine the prevalence of weight-based teasing, and evaluate its association with depression, anxiety and unhealthy eating behaviour in a large sample of adolescents in the Ottawa (Ontario) area.A total of 1491 adolescents from public and private middle schools and high schools in rural and urban areas of Ottawa responded confidentially to surveys.More girls than boys reported that they experienced weight-based teasing (33% versus 18%). The prevalence of weight-based teasing by peers was significantly higher among overweight and obese youth than among normal weight youth (45% versus 22%). Teasing about body weight was consistently associated with anxiety, psychological distress and disordered eating, and these associations held for both boys and girls, and were independent of weight status.Weight-based teasing is a common experience among Ottawa-area adolescents, especially among overweight girls, and was found to be associated with psychological morbidity. Effective interventions are needed to help victims cope with and prevent further weight-based teasing and its harmful psychological sequelae.