Obesity and Nutritional Sociology: A Model for Coping with the Stigma of Obesity

Nutritional sociology uses sociological theories and methods to study and influence food patterns, eating habits, and nutrition. Obesity and weight loss are important topics in nutritional sociology, and stigmatization of the obese is a long-standing interest. Most past sociological work has only described stigmatization, rather than developing ways to facilitate coping with it. A model for coping with the stigma of obesity is presented here. The model includes four components: Recognition, Readiness, Reaction, and Repair. Recognition involves awareness of the stigma of obesity and understanding about stigmatization. Readiness involves anticipation that stigmatization may occur in specific settings or by some people, and preparation for and prevention of stigmatizing acts. Reaction involves immediate and long-term coping techniques to deal with a stigmatizing act. Repair involves the recovery from stigmatization and attempts at restitution and reform of the stigmatizing actions of others. This model uses a sociological perspective to develop strategies for dealing with stigmatization, which differs from a medical model for dealing with obesity. This sociological model for helping people cope with the stigma of obesity may also be useful with other types of stigmas

Changes in intergenerational eating patterns and the impact on childhood obesity

The objective of this study was to examine intergenerational eating patterns within two sets of families, those with an obese child and those with a normal weight child, and to assess the impact of intergenerational influences on children's eating. A qualitative study design was used, incorporating focus groups and semi-structured interviews. Sixteen focus groups took place and 27 semi-structured interviews were held with different generations. Focus groups were conducted in the community with grandparents, parents and children from different families. This was followed by semi-structured interviews, involving individuals from three generations within families with an obese child and within families with a normal weight child. An examination of intergenerational eating has shown that eating patterns have changed regardless of whether or not families have children who are obese. The grandparent's eating patterns were more structured, whereas the children's eating patterns were less so. There have been more changes, and eating is less structured, within those families with an obese child than those families with a normal weight child. It is recommended that approaches to tackling childhood obesity concentrate on the family setting and the ways in which professionals can support families to change eating practices. Future research should formally test the relationship between the concept 'structured eating' and the 'what' of eating, in order to determine whether there is a link between intergenerational eating patterns and childhood obesity. © The Author(s) 2010

Health, ethics and environment: A qualitative study of vegetarian motivations

This qualitative study explored the motivations of vegetarians by means of online ethnographic research with participants in an international message board. The researcher participated in discussions on the board, gathered responses to questions from 33 participants, and conducted follow-up e-mail interviews with eighteen of these participants. Respondents were predominantly from the US, Canada and the UK. Seventy per cent were female, and ages ranged from 14 to 53, with a median of 26 years. Data were analysed using a thematic approach. While this research found that health and the ethical treatment of animals were the main motivators for participants’ vegetarianism, participants reported a range of commitments to environmental concerns, although in only one case was environmentalism a primary motivator for becoming a vegetarian. The data indicates that vegetarians may follow a trajectory, in which initial motivations are augmented over time by other reasons for sustaining or further restricting their diet

Area-level deprivation and adiposity in children: is the relationship linear?

OBJECTIVE: It has been suggested that childhood obesity is inversely associated with deprivation, such that the prevalence is higher in more deprived groups. However, comparatively few studies actually use an area-level measure of deprivation, limiting the scope to assess trends in the association with obesity for this indicator. Furthermore, most assume a linear relationship. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate associations between area-level deprivation and three measures of adiposity in children: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR). DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study in which data were collected on three occasions a year apart (2005-2007). SUBJECTS: Data were available for 13,333 children, typically aged 11-12 years, from 37 schools and 542 lower super-output areas (LSOAs). MEASURES: Stature, mass and WC. Obesity was defined as a BMI and WC exceeding the 95th centile according to British reference data. WHtR exceeding 0.5 defined obesity. The Index of Multiple Deprivation affecting children (IDACI) was used to determine area-level deprivation. RESULTS: Considerable differences in the prevalence of obesity exist between the three different measures. However, for all measures of adiposity the highest probability of being classified as obese is in the middle of the IDACI range. This relationship is more marked in girls, such that the probability of being obese for girls living in areas at the two extremes of deprivation is around half that at the peak, occurring in the middle. CONCLUSION: These data confirm the high prevalence of obesity in children and suggest that the relationship between obesity and residential area-level deprivation is not linear. This is contrary to the 'deprivation theory' and questions the current understanding and interpretation of the relationship between obesity and deprivation in children. These results could help make informed decisions at the local level

Social factors and obesity: an investigation of the role of health behaviours

OBJECTIVES: This study evaluated a behavioural model of the relation between social factors and obesity, in which differences in body mass index (BMI) across sociodemographic groups were hypothesized to be attributable to social group differences in health behaviours affecting energy expenditure (physical activity, diet and alcohol consumption and weight control). METHODS: A total of 8667 adults who participated in the 1995 Australian National Health and Nutrition Surveys provided data on a range of health factors including objectively measured height and weight, health behaviours, and social factors including family status, employment status, housing situation and migration status. RESULTS: Social factors remained significant predictors of BMI after controlling for all health behaviours. Neither social factors alone, nor health behaviours alone, adequately explained the variance in BMI. Gender-specific interactions were found between social factors and individual health behaviours. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that social factors moderate the relation between BMI and weight-related behaviours, and that the mechanisms underlying sociodemographic group differences in obesity may vary among men and women. Additional factors are likely to act in conjunction with current health behaviours to explain variation in obesity prevalence across sociodemographic groups.<br /

You are what you eat? Vegetarianism, health and identity

This paper examines the views of ‘health vegetarians’ through a qualitative study of an online vegetarian message board. The researcher participated in discussions on the board, gathered responses to questions from 33 participants, and conducted follow-up e-mail interviews with 18 of these participants. Respondents were predominantly from the United States, Canada and the UK. Seventy per cent were female, and ages ranged from 14 to 53 years, with a median of 26 years. These data are interrogated within a theoretical framework that asks, ‘what can a vegetarian body do?’ and explores the physical, psychic, social and conceptual relations of participants. This provides insights into the identities of participants, and how diet and identity interact. It is concluded that vegetarianism is both a diet and a bodily practice with consequences for identity formation and stabilisation

Evaluation of Fingerprint Visualization on Various Soft Surfaces

Aim:Evaluation of Fingerprint Visualization on Various Soft Surfaces. Materials and methods: Five distinct soft surfaces with varying compositions were considered in the research. The prints were preserved by drying them afterwards. Every time an imprint was made of the right thumb, it was dried and cleaned. An ink-on-paper control print and an iPhone picture were both used. The samples were then examined using Video Spectral Comparator. Results:The images were instantly made visible after the first fingerprinting deposit. It was impossible to determine how long it would take for the caulking to dry, thus the surface was not consistent. It had a thick texture and a white tone. Oblique and transmitted light both revealed it. Optimal viewing of the clay surface print was achieved in the post-deposit oblique left light. Conclusion: The VSC is effective on most surfaces, although gel lifters are more suited to surfaces that can hold moisture. Techniques that visualize fingerprints on various surfaces have not been the subject of considerable study. The composition and kind of materials used determine the assessment

The Impact of Income on the Weight of Elderly Americans

This paper estimates the impact of income on the body weight and clinical weight classification of elderly Americans using a natural experiment that led otherwise identical retirees to receive significantly different Social Security payments based on their year of birth. We estimate models of instrumental variables using data from the National Health Interview Surveys and find no significant effect of income on weight. The confidence intervals rule out even moderate effects of income on weight and on the probability of being underweight or obese, especially for men. For example, they indicate that the income elasticity of body mass index is not greater in absolute value than 0.06 for men or 0.14 for women