Attitudes towards and perception of overweight and obesity in the public opinion: a systematic review

Background/Objectives: Up to this date, the obesity pandemic has yet to be confined. While weight reduction programmes based on individual behaviour only yield a long term achievable weight loss of 10%, still leaving many individuals obese, the role of interventions aiding to avoid negative consequences of overweight has grown. One major cause of negative consequences regarding individual (eating behaviour, psychiatric comorbidity) and public health (prevention efforts etc.) dimensions is the perceived stigmatization and discrimination by their social surroundings. This review summarizes population-based studies…