Obesity has few effects on future psychosocial functioning of adolescents

We reexamine the effects of obesity on a wide range (n = 17) of indicators of functioning drawn from five broad domains: interpersonal problems, psychological problems, suicidal behaviors, academic performance, and psychiatric disorders. Evidence on this question is mixed. Data are analyzed from a large community sample of adolescents 11–17 at baseline (n = 4175) who were followed up a year later (n = 3134). Using measured height and weight, overweight was defined as 95th > BMI ≤ 85th percentile and obese as BMI > 95th percentile. At baseline, obesity was associated with increased odds only for any mood disorder and poor perceived mental health. For boys, there were no significant associations, but girls had higher odds of problems at school, poor perceived mental health, and mood disorders. Results from the two-wave cohort reveal obesity increased future risk only for poor perceived mental health. For boys, the same pattern was observed, but for girls there were no significant associations. Overall, we found that weight status had few deleterious effects on adolescent social functioning, in multivariate, prospective analyses. If there is an effect of obesity on functioning, it may operate through mediators such as body image.

► Prospective data on adolescents examine effects of obesity on functioning.
► Only 2 of the 17 psychosocial outcomes examined were associated with obesity.
► For boys, this same result was observed; for girls there were no effects for obesity.
► Results provide little evidence for negative effects of obesity on adolescents.