More of the same? Conflicting perspectives of obesity causation and intervention amongst overweight people, health professionals and policy makers

Greener, Joe; Douglas, Flora; Teijlingen, Edwin van

doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.11.017

Cited by 112 publications

(144 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…The model presented in this article describes a shared understanding of roles and responsibilities, and makes suggestions on how primary care can develop obesity services that are acceptable to and appropriate for patients and practitioners. [23][24][25] Knowledge/education Disillusioned with solutions to obesity 23,24 Medicalisation Patients place faith in individual-level interventions 23,24 Medicalisation Practitioners convey obesity an individual responsibility 22,25 Medicalisation Lack of confidence in services [22][23][24][25] Uncertainty Frustrated by limited options available 22,24 Uncertainty Doubt resulting from practitioners' ambivalence 22,24,25 Uncertainty Patients want support 22,25 Communication Practitioners appear frustrated 22,24 Communication Self-blame 23,25 Blame/stigma Practitioners blame patient 22,25 Blame/stigma…”

Section: How This Fits Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Practitioners limited by evidence base [26][27][28][29] Knowledge/education Practitioners do not have sufficient obesity-specific training 27,28 Knowledge/education Patients lack sufficient knowledge [27][28][29] Knowledge/education Obesity is a socioecological issue 23,26,[28][29][30] Medicalisation Practitioners only responsible for medical issues 26,27,29,30 Medicalisation Doubt over patients' abilities to change 22,28,29 Uncertainty Primary care may not be the appropriate place to address obesity [26][27][28][29] Uncertainty Sensitive topic threatens patient-practitioner relationship 26,[28][29][30] Communication Obesity-related training is required 23,27,28,30 Communication Practitioners sometimes use stigmatising language 23,26,28 Blame/stigma Patients can be difficult to deal with 23,[26][27][28][29][30] Blame/stigma Beliefs about the causes of obesity, the Practitioners believe that they should only take a strong role when conflict as to whether it is a medical or obesity is considered a medical issue, and do not have a role to play in social ...…”

Section: Primary Care Practitionermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[22][23][24][25] Barriers to weight loss were identified: lack of resources, 23,25 and loss of 'motivation' and 'self-respect'. 23 'Failure' can negatively affect confidence and self-esteem. 24 Psychological support and individualised advice was often not offered by practitioners, despite clinical recommendations.…”

Section: Communicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…22,24 Because patient experiences lay within 'complex' 'life stories', awarenessraising around the socioecological factors influencing obesity could help to promote positive change in patient behaviour. 23 Medicalisation. Patients tended to adhere to a biomedical approach, believing obesity is 'pathological' 23 and 'abnormal'.…”

Section: Communicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…23 Medicalisation. Patients tended to adhere to a biomedical approach, believing obesity is 'pathological' 23 and 'abnormal'. 25 Parents of overweight children felt 'listened to' and 'taken seriously' if practitioners ran tests for comorbidities.…”

Section: Communicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Obesity in primary care: a qualitative synthesis of patient and practitioner perspectives on roles and responsibilities

Henderson

2015

Br J Gen Pract

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Section: How This Fits Inmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Primary Care Practitionermentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Communicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Communicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Communicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Obesity in primary care: a qualitative synthesis of patient and practitioner perspectives on roles and responsibilities

Henderson

2015

Br J Gen Pract

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Obesity: Its Status as a Disease

Hofmann

2016

Encyclopedia of Life Sciences

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Is obesity a disease? Yes, World Health Organization (WHO) and other authoritative institutions say so, is the standard answer. However, by investigating these sources and some standard definitions of disease, the answer becomes much less obvious. According to naturalist and hybrid definitions of disease, obesity does not qualify as a disease, but according to several normativist conceptions of disease, it does. This undecidedness gives leeway for a wide range of pragmatic arguments for and against making obesity a disease. Using social conceptions of disease to make obesity a disease calls for careful reflection, as they may be based on contested aesthetic, moral and other social norms. History is full of examples where socially defined diseases later have been heavily criticised. Homosexuality, dissiency, drapetomania and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are some examples. Key Concepts Obesity is defined as an excess of adipose tissue (BMI ≥ 30 kg m 2 ). Disease is defined in many ways, and in general, definitions are classified as naturalist, normativist or hybrid. A naturalist definition of disease defines disease in terms of characteristics in nature. A normativist definition of disease defines disease in terms of norms (and values), and as such depends on social conventions. Hybrid definitions of disease refer both to natural and social phenomena. Obesity is not a disease according to naturalist conceptions of disease. Obesity may very well be a disease according to normativist definitions of disease. Pragmatic arguments for making obesity a disease yet lack convincing evidence.

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Obesity: Its Status as a Disease

Hofmann

2024

Encyclopedia of Life Sciences

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Is obesity a disease? Yes, the World Health Organization (WHO) and other authoritative institutions say so, is the standard answer. However, by investigating these sources and some standard definitions of disease, the answer becomes much less obvious. According to naturalist and hybrid definitions of disease, obesity does not qualify as a disease, but according to several normativist conceptions of disease, it does. This undecidedness gives leeway for a wide range of pragmatic arguments for and against making obesity a disease. Using social conceptions of disease to make obesity a disease calls for careful reflection, as they may be based on contested aesthetic, moral and other social norms. History is full of examples where socially defined diseases later have been heavily criticised. Homosexuality, dissidency, drapetomania and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are some examples. Key Concepts Obesity is acknowledged as a disease by a wide range of organisations. Obesity is commonly defined by having a body mass index (BMI) over 30. Disease is defined as naturalistic, normativistic, or hybrid concepts. The reasons for making obesity a disease are pragmatic and not principled. It is easier to argue that obesity is a disease from normativist than from naturalist conceptions of disease. Until more facts are available, and a wide range of key issues are solved, obesity's status as a disease remains speculative.

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More of the same? Conflicting perspectives of obesity causation and intervention amongst overweight people, health professionals and policy makers

Cited by 112 publications

References 30 publications

Obesity in primary care: a qualitative synthesis of patient and practitioner perspectives on roles and responsibilities

Obesity in primary care: a qualitative synthesis of patient and practitioner perspectives on roles and responsibilities

Obesity: Its Status as a Disease

Obesity: Its Status as a Disease

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