Lykouras Lefteris
Athens University Medical School, 2nd Department of Psychiatry, Attikon General Hospital, Athens, Greece.
Dig Dis. 2008;26(1):36-9. doi: 10.1159/000109384. Epub 2008 Feb 15.
Nowadays obesity is recognized to be one of the greatest public health problems worldwide. There is no indication that the huge increase in obesity seen the last decades is declining. The examination of psychological aspects of persons with morbid obesity is essential. Identification of the psychological factors associated with weight loss expands our knowledge about behaviors which are crucial in order to avoid failures in treatment. Most information on this is obtained preoperatively. Although there is no single personality type characteristic of the morbidly obese, they differ from the general population as their self-esteem and impulse control is lower. They have passive dependent and passive aggressive personality traits, as well as a trend for somatization and problem denial. Their thinking is usually dichotomous and catastrophic. Obese patients also show low cooperativeness and fail to see the self as autonomous and integrated. In the morbidly obese before undergoing surgical treatment, unusual prevalence of psychopathology, namely depression and anxiety disorders, is observed. They are subject to prejudice and discrimination and should be treated with concern to help alleviate their feelings of rejection and guilt. Information on the psychological profile of obese persons is limited. Future studies are warranted, since there is a pressured need for these people to built cognitive skills and control their body weight.
如今，肥胖被公认为是全球最严重的公共卫生问题之一。没有迹象表明过去几十年中肥胖现象的大幅增加正在下降。对病态肥胖者的心理方面进行检查至关重要。识别与体重减轻相关的心理因素，能扩展我们对那些对于避免治疗失败至关重要的行为的认识。关于这方面的大多数信息是在术前获得的。虽然病态肥胖者没有单一的人格类型特征，但他们与一般人群不同，因为他们的自尊和冲动控制较低。他们具有被动依赖和被动攻击型人格特质，以及躯体化和问题否认的倾向。他们的思维通常是二分法和灾难性的。肥胖患者还表现出合作性差，且不将自己视为自主且完整的个体。在接受手术治疗前的病态肥胖者中，观察到精神病理学（即抑郁症和焦虑症）的异常高发。他们遭受偏见和歧视，应该得到关心对待，以帮助减轻他们的被排斥感和内疚感。关于肥胖者心理特征的信息有限。鉴于这些人迫切需要培养认知技能并控制体重，未来的研究很有必要。
