Aim: To compare obese and not overweight children's quality of life (QOL) related to stigmatization
phenomena from parents' point of view. Methods
: We developed a 56-item questionnaire (the QOL questionnaire 1.0) which was filled
by parents of 284 obese, overweight and not overweight children, aged 4 to 18. 28%
of the children were obese, 15% overweight and 36% not overweight. Results
: Children's obesity was strongly correlated with parents' obesity (p<0.001) and parents'
low standard of education (p<0.001), and less correlated with parents' low social
position (p=0.028). There was no significant difference between obese and not overweight
children concerning leisure activities (p=0.686), TV watching (p=0.095) and being
invited by other children (p=0.747). However, parents of obese children esteem them
rarely as sporty (p<0.001), and they are considered to have only “few friends their
age“ (p<0.001). Obese children are very often target of teasing (53.3% versus 0.9%,
p<0.001) and supposed to be aggressive (p<0.001). Their school results are worsening
(p<0.001) and they show lower self esteem (p<0.001). At home, there are more often
conflicts about food (p=0.002), as their parents are more restrictive (p=0.007) to
them. Conclusion
: Obese children's QOL is low not only because of the physical impacts of their weight,
but mainly because of social and intra-familial stigmatization. Thus emphasizing positive
social interactions, focusing on improvement of self esteem, might be more efficient
in therapy then restrictive dietary advising.
