Interventions for reducing weight bias in healthcare providers: An interprofessional systematic review and meta‐analysis

Moore, Caroline; Oliver, Tracy L.; Randolph, Justus; Dowdell, Elizabeth Burgess

doi:10.1111/cob.12545

Cited by 18 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…[ 35 ] Seven reviews were included for quantitative and qualitative analyses. [ 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 ]…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three reviews assessed trials to reduce weight bias and stigma in healthcare professionals. [ 40 41 42 ] Descriptive details and findings of these reviews are presented in Table 2 . In summary, most research was performed on student healthcare professional populations in the USA or other primarily Caucasian countries.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three reviews, inclusive of one meta-analysis, identified that a variety of interventions appear to be effective in improving knowledge or the explicit outcomes in the short term; however, trials are generally of low methodological quality, limiting the ability to determine the true effectiveness of the interventions. [ 40 41 42 ] The global presence of weight bias in healthcare professionals, and the lack of clear guidance for the development of interventions to reduce it, is a cause for concern, considering its influence on stigma and the substantial impact that it has on people living with overweight or obesity. This review will further discuss key findings and explore how they may relate to future research, as well as influence the treatment, health and well-being of individuals with obesity in Singapore.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Weight bias and stigma in healthcare professionals: a narrative review with a Singapore lens

2023

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Addressing weight stigma is essential to obesity management as it causes inequalities in healthcare and impacts the outcomes of health. This narrative review summarises systematic review findings about the presence of weight bias in healthcare professionals, and interventions to reduce weight bias or stigma in these professionals. Two databases (PubMed and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature [CINAHL]) were searched. Seven eligible reviews were identified from 872 search results. Four reviews identified the presence of weight bias, and three investigated trials to reduce weight bias or stigma in healthcare professionals. The findings may help further research and the treatment, health and well-being of individuals with overweight or obesity in Singapore. Weight bias was prevalent among qualified and student healthcare professionals globally, and there is a lack of clear guidance for effective interventions to reduce it, particularly in Asia. Future research is essential to identify the issues and inform initiatives to reduce weight bias and stigma among healthcare professionals in Singapore.

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“…[ 35 ] Seven reviews were included for quantitative and qualitative analyses. [ 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 ]…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Weight bias and stigma in healthcare professionals: a narrative review with a Singapore lens

2023

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“…Although weight bias has been recognized as a human rights and social justice issue (1,(48)(49)(50) with well-documented mental and physical health consequences (51,52), we have yet to see large shifts in attitudes and practices about weight and toward people with higher weights at the institutional and societal levels. Although research evidence included herein helps inform public health action, education and awareness of weight bias is not enough to alter societal norms (53)(54)(55)(56). Despite being outside the scope of this paper, upstream systemic approaches (57) are needed to reduce weight bias and warrant future research to determine effective strategies to improve attitudes beyond the individual level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predictors of support for anti-weight discrimination policies among Canadian adults

Levy

Forouhar

Edache

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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IntroductionWeight discrimination of individuals with overweight or obesity is associated with adverse mental and physical health. Weight discrimination is prevalent in many sectors such as within workplaces, where individuals with overweight and obesity are denied the same opportunities as individuals with lower weight status, regardless of performance or experience. The purpose of this study was to understand the Canadian public's support or opposition of anti-weight discrimination policies and predictors of support. It was hypothesized that Canadians will show support of anti-weight discrimination policies to some extent.MethodsA secondary analysis was conducted on a previous cross-sectional sample of Canadian adults (N = 923, 50.76% women, 74.4% White) who responded to an online survey assessing weight bias and support of twelve anti-weight discrimination policies related to societal policies (e.g., implementing laws preventing weight discrimination) and employment-related policies (e.g., making it illegal to not hire someone due to their weight). Participants completed the Causes of Obesity Questionnaire (COB), the Anti-Fat Attitudes Questionnaire (AFA) and the Modified Weight Bias Internalization Scale (WBIS-M). Multiple logistic regressions were used to determine predictors of policy support.ResultsSupport for policies ranged from 31.3% to 76.9%, with employment anti-discrimination policies obtaining greater support than societal policies. Identifying as White and a woman, being over the age of 45 and having a higher BMI were associated with an increased likelihood of supporting anti-weight discrimination policies. There were no differences between the level of support associated with attributing obesity to behavioral or non-behavioral causes. Explicit weight bias was associated with a reduced likelihood of supporting 8/12 policies. Weight Bias Internalization was associated with an increased likelihood of supporting all societal policies but none of the employment policies.ConclusionsSupport for anti-weight discrimination policies exists among Canadian adults, and explicit weight bias is associated with a lower likelihood of supporting these policies. These results highlight the need for education on the prevalence and perils of weight discrimination which may urge policy makers to consider weight bias as a form of discrimination that must be addressed. More research on potential implementation of anti-weight discrimination policies in Canada is warranted.

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“…Even if such comments are directed at coworkers rather than patients, they perpetuate a culture of weight stigma and are more likely to cause harm than help. Interventions to reduce weight bias among healthcare providers have targeted education on the controllability of weight, increased empathy, self-reflection/awareness of personal biases, cognitive dissonance, and/or contrasting negative personal attitudes with positive social consensus with little evidence of effect ( 70 , 71 ). Notably, this area of research has focused on evaluating immediate changes in provider attitudes (rather than provider behavior or patient outcomes) and often occurs in the context of weight-centric care, thereby failing to address sociocultural factors affecting provider behavior.…”

Section: Weight Stigma In Ed Treatmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dismantling weight stigma in eating disorder treatment: Next steps for the field

2023

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The authors posit current guidelines and treatment for eating disorders (EDs) fail to adequately address, and often perpetuate, weight stigma. The social devaluation and denigration of higher-weight individuals cuts across nearly every life domain and is associated with negative physiological and psychosocial outcomes, mirroring the harms attributed to weight itself. Maintaining focus on weight in ED treatment can intensify weight stigma among patients and providers, leading to increased internalization, shame, and poorer health outcomes. Stigma has been recognized as a fundamental cause of health inequities. With no clear evidence that the proposed mechanisms of ED treatment effectively address internalized weight bias and its association with disordered eating behavior, it is not hard to imagine that providers’ perpetuation of weight bias, however unintentional, may be a key contributor to the suboptimal response to ED treatment. Several reported examples of weight stigma in ED treatment are discussed to illustrate the pervasiveness and insidiousness of this problem. The authors contend weight management inherently perpetuates weight stigma and outline steps for researchers and providers to promote weight-inclusive care (targeting health behavior change rather than weight itself) as an alternative approach capable of addressing some of the many social injustices in the history of this field.

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Interventions for reducing weight bias in healthcare providers: An interprofessional systematic review and meta‐analysis

Cited by 18 publications

References 64 publications

Weight bias and stigma in healthcare professionals: a narrative review with a Singapore lens

Weight bias and stigma in healthcare professionals: a narrative review with a Singapore lens

Predictors of support for anti-weight discrimination policies among Canadian adults

Dismantling weight stigma in eating disorder treatment: Next steps for the field

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