Alliance for Self Care Research, School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA, UK.
BMC Public Health. 2011 Jun 29;11:513. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-11-513.
Health professionals have an important role to play in the management of obesity, but may be unsure how to raise weight issues with patients. The societal stigma associated with excess weight means that weight status terms may be misunderstood, cause offence and risk upsetting patient-professional relationships. This study investigated the views of people who were overweight or obese on the acceptability of weight status terms and their potential to motivate weight loss when used by health professionals.
A qualitative study comprising 34 semi-structured interviews with men and women in their mid-to-late 30s and 50s who were overweight or obese and had recently been informed of their weight status. Thematic framework analysis was conducted to allow the systematic comparison of views by age, gender and apparent motivation to lose weight.
Although many people favoured 'Overweight' to describe their weight status, there were doubts about its effectiveness to motivate weight loss. Terms including 'BMI' ('Body Mass Index') or referring to the unhealthy nature of their weight were generally considered acceptable and motivational, although a number of men questioned the validity of BMI as an indicator of excess weight. Participants, particularly women, felt that health professionals should avoid using 'Fat'. Whilst response to 'Obese' was largely negative, people recognised that it could be appropriate in a health consultation. Some younger people, particularly those who appeared motivated to lose weight, felt 'Obese' could encourage weight loss, but it was also clear the term could provoke negative emotions if used insensitively.
Although most people who are overweight or obese accept that it is appropriate for health professionals to discuss weight issues with patients, there is great variation in response to the terms commonly used to describe excess weight. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to discussing weight status: some men and younger people may appreciate a direct approach, whilst others need to be treated more sensitively. It is therefore important that health professionals use their knowledge and understanding to select the terms that are most likely to be acceptable, but at the same time have most potential to motivate each individual patient.
健康专业人员在肥胖管理中扮演着重要的角色，但他们可能不确定如何与患者讨论体重问题。与超重相关的社会耻辱感意味着体重状况术语可能会被误解，引起冒犯，并有可能破坏医患关系。本研究调查了超重或肥胖人群对体重状况术语的可接受性的看法，以及当健康专业人员使用这些术语时，它们对减肥的潜在激励作用。
这是一项定性研究，包括 34 名年龄在 30 多岁和 50 多岁的超重或肥胖的男性和女性的半结构式访谈，他们最近被告知自己的体重状况。采用主题框架分析方法，允许按年龄、性别和明显的减肥动机对观点进行系统比较。
尽管许多人喜欢用“超重”来描述自己的体重状况，但对它是否能有效激励减肥存在疑虑。包括“BMI”（身体质量指数）或提到体重不健康的术语通常被认为是可以接受和有激励作用的，尽管一些男性质疑 BMI 作为超重指标的有效性。参与者，特别是女性，认为健康专业人员应该避免使用“胖”。虽然对“肥胖”的反应大多是负面的，但人们认识到在健康咨询中使用它是合适的。一些年轻人，特别是那些看起来有减肥动力的人，认为“肥胖”可以鼓励减肥，但如果使用不当，也很容易引起负面情绪。
尽管大多数超重或肥胖的人都认为健康专业人员与患者讨论体重问题是合适的，但对于描述超重的常用术语，人们的反应差异很大。与体重状况讨论没有一刀切的方法：一些男性和年轻人可能欣赏直接的方法，而其他人则需要更敏感地对待。因此，健康专业人员应该利用他们的知识和理解，选择最有可能被接受的术语，但同时也要选择最有可能激励每个个体患者的术语。
