Obesity stigma: A newly recognized barrier to comprehensive and effective type 2 diabetes management
- 3 September 2010
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Wiley in Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners
- Vol. 22 (10), 527-533
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-7599.2010.00551.x
Abstract
The purpose of this article is to increase awareness regarding the social problem of obesity stigma and its effects on persons with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In addition, practical strategies to dispel stigma and improve diabetes care that nurse practitioners (NPs) can integrate into practice will be introduced. Thorough review of the literature was conducted including MEDLINE, PsycINFO and CINAHL, spanning the years 1994-2008. Obesity and diabetes are both epidemics that demand immediate attention; however, obesity stigma can act as a barrier to ongoing management of both conditions. Obese patients with T2DM may feel responsible not only for their weight but also their diabetes. Therefore, NPs can employ specific counseling strategies that may be beneficial with T2DM obese patients to improve continuity of care while decreasing weight-related stigmatization. Negative attitudes toward obesity by healthcare professionals can act as a barrier to diabetes management. Primary care providers including NPs must begin through self-reflection to recognize their own attitudes regarding weight-stigma and how these attitudes may affect their patients. By implementing effective strategies to reduce weight bias, an environment conducive to diabetes and lifestyle modification management may prevent patients from forgoing care.This publication has 45 references indexed in Scilit:
- Patterns of regular use of mammography—Body weight and ethnicity: The Multiethnic CohortJournal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, 2010
- The Stigma of Obesity: A Review and UpdateObesity, 2009
- Obesity and Undiagnosed Diabetes in the U.S.Diabetes Care, 2008
- Lifetime Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Among Individuals With and Without Diabetes Stratified by Obesity Status in the Framingham Heart StudyDiabetes Care, 2008
- Approaches to Treatment of Pre-Diabetes and Obesity and Promising New Approaches to Type 2 DiabetesDiabetes Care, 2008
- The body politic: the relationship between stigma and obesity-associated diseaseBMC Public Health, 2008
- Revisiting Goffman’sStigma: the social experience of families with children requiring mechanical ventilation at homeJournal of Child Health Care, 2007
- Perceived barriers and effective strategies to diabetes self‐managementJournal of Advanced Nursing, 2006
- Implicit anti-fat bias among health professionals: is anyone immune?International Journal of Obesity, 2001
- Caring, Control, and Clinicians' Influence: Ethical Dilemmas in Development DisabilitiesEthics & Behavior, 1999