Too few doctors tell their patients that they are overweight or obese, allowing patients to remain in denial about their weight, according to a new study.
Researchers led by Dr. Robert Post of the Virtua Family Residency in Voorhees, New Jersey analyzed national data on 5,500 U.S. adults. They found that one-third of obese participants and more than half of overweight patients said their doctor had never talked to them about their weight.
Compared to patients who were not informed of their weight problem, study participants who were told by their physicians that they were overweight were eight times more likely to perceive themselves this way. Obese patients were six times more likely to accept that they had a weight problem, the researchers said.
"If people are told by their doctor that they are overweight, it corrects their perception," Post said in the report.
In addition, overweight and obese people dramatically underestimate the extent of their weight problems. Nearly 20 percent of obese patients whose doctors had not brought up their weight described themselves as "not overweight." Many patients correctly estimated their body mass index (BMI) but did not feel that the extra weight was a health issue.
"There are big jumps in people recognizing their weight and wanting to lose," said Post.
