Characteristics of adults with overweight and obesity who have not attempted weight loss in the prior 12 months.

OBJECTIVE

To determine weight-related characteristics of adults with overweight or obesity who had not attempted weight loss in the prior 12 months.

METHODS

Adults from the obesity cohort of the PORTAL clinical data research network were randomly selected to complete a survey in 2015. It included topics of experiences with health care providers, weight history, and health-promoting behaviors.

RESULTS

A total of 2811 adults completed the survey, of whom 24% reported not attempting weight loss in the previous 12 months. Controlling for sociodemographic characteristics and body mass index, respondents who reported that their health care provider never talked about weight were more likely to not attempt weight loss in the previous 12 months compared with respondents who reported providers frequently brought up weight (OR: 0.45; 95% CI: 0.24, 0.66). Respondents who perceived themselves as normal weight or underweight were 4.22 times more likely (95% CI: 3.53, 5.05) to not attempt weight loss compared with respondents who perceived themselves as overweight. Respondents who reported that they never tried to lose at least 10 lbs, ate 0-2 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, or engaged in 0-29 min of physical activity weekly were less likely to attempt weight loss.

CONCLUSIONS

Receiving advice on weight loss from health care providers to improve awareness of overweight and obesity status may be important factors for a person's weight management. Provider discussions about weight may be a strategy to motivate weight loss attempts.