Words will never hurt me? Preferred terms for describing obesity and binge eating

Abstract

Objective: This study evaluated individuals' language preferences for discussing obesity and binge eating. Method: Participants (N = 817; 68.3% female) were an online community sample. They rated the desirability of terms related to obesity and binge eating, and also completed psychometrically established eating-disorder measures. In addition to examining participants' preferences, analyses explored whether preferences differed by socio-demographic variables, weight status and binge-eating status. Results: Preferred obesity-related terms were weight and BMI, although women rated undesirable obesity-related terms even lower than did men. Participants with obesity and binge eating rated weight, BMI, unhealthy BMI and large size as less desirable than participants with obesity but not binge eating. Binge-related terms were generally ranked neutrally; preferred descriptions were kept eating even though not physically hungry and loss of control. Conclusions: Preferred terms were generally consistent across sex, weight status and binge-eating status. Using terms ranked more preferably and avoiding terms ranked more undesirably may enhance clinical interactions, particularly when discussing obesity with women and individuals reporting binge eating, as these groups had stronger aversion to some non-preferred terms. Findings that the selected binge-related descriptions were rated neutrally on average provide support for their use by clinicians. What's known• Individuals prefer the terms 'weight' and 'BMI' when talking about obesity.

What words should we use to talk about weight? A systematic review of quantitative and qualitative studies examining preferences for weight‐related terminology

“…In total, 16 studies (48%) included in the review were published between 2003 and 2013, and 17 studies (52%) were published between 2014 and 2019. Of the 23 quantitative studies reviewed, 17 used cross‐sectional surveys, five used experimental designs and one study included both a cross‐sectional survey study and an experimental study . Of the six quantitative studies using experimental research designs, none tested the same research question(s) or compared identical weight‐related terms, and each study used a different type of experimental manipulation (eg, clinical vignettes, fictional advertisements or assigning participants specific weight labels) and measurement approaches (eg, figure silhouette scales versus attitude thermometers versus semantic‐differential rating scales).…”

The Use of Language in Diabetes Care and Education

“…People have identified "obesity" as an undesirable (19,20,(42)(43)(44) and highly stigmatizing term (44) that implies a "moral or esthetic failing" (42). People experiencing or fearing healthrelated stigma may avoid treatment or future health care appointments (30,45) and have reported feeling bad about themselves and an increased likelihood of avoiding exercise (45).…”

“…Adults living with diabetes who participated in a focus group study (n 5 68) reported that they experience judgment and blame through the language used by health care professionals, friends, family, and the general public (16). It is preferable in patient and professional education, research, publishing, and health care to use words that are factual, neutral, and nonjudgmental rather than words that impose blame or imply negative attitudes (19)(20)(21). Possibly because of perceived judgment from health care professionals, people with diabetes sometimes alter or underreport blood glucose levels (22) or omit information during health care provider visits (23).…”

Cardiovascular disease and perceived weight, racial, and gender discrimination in U.S. adults

“…Importantly, anti-obesity attitudes are common across the weight spectrum, and persons with overweight/obesity frequently have negative attitudes about themselves [39, 40]. Our findings also highlight the need for improved training of health-care professionals around these issues [45], as well as public health and policy efforts to address and reduce discrimination, including but not limited to greater sensitivity regarding language [46]. …”