Do physician beliefs about causes of obesity translate into actionable issues on which physicians counsel their patients?

OBJECTIVE

To describe the relationship between primary care physicians' (PCPs') beliefs about the causes of obesity with the frequency of nutritional counseling.

METHODS

We analyzed a national cross-sectional internet-based survey of 500 US PCPs collected between February and March 2011.

RESULTS

PCPs that identified overconsumption of food as a very important cause of obesity had significantly greater odds of counseling patients to reduce portion sizes (OR 3.40; 95%CI: 1.73-6.68) and to avoid high calorie ingredients when cooking (OR 2.16; 95%CI: 1.07-4.33). Physicians who believed that restaurant/fast food eating was a very important cause of obesity had significantly greater odds of counseling patients to avoid high calorie menu items outside the home (OR 1.93; 95%CI: 1.20-3.11). Physicians who reported that sugar-sweetened beverages were a very important cause of obesity had significantly greater odds of counseling their obese patients to reduce consumption (OR 5.99; 95%CI: 3.53-10.17).

CONCLUSIONS

PCP beliefs about the diet-related causes of obesity may translate into actionable nutritional counseling topics for physicians to use with their patients.