Research has linked low social standing with higher body mass index (BMI) and overeating among children. Separate studies have highlighted relationships between teasing and these outcomes. New work by the Social and Behavioral Sciences Branch and the Yanovski Lab offers insights into how the interplay between low social status and teasing may affect body composition and eating behaviors.
- The researchers asked children ages 8 to 17 years participating in an NICHD clinical study about their perception of their popularity (subjective social status, or SSS), their perception of their family’s affluence (subjective socioeconomic status), and distress due to teasing. They evaluated interactions between these factors and assessed possible effects on BMI, fat mass index (FMI), and eating in the absence of hunger.
- Teasing distress was associated with higher BMI, FMI, and eating in the absence of hunger due to negative feelings.
- Lower SSS was associated with higher BMI, FMI, and eating in the absence of hunger due to negative feelings only when participants experienced teasing distress.
- Subjective socioeconomic status, alone or in combination with teasing distress, did not appear to affect BMI, FMI, or eating in the absence of hunger.
- The findings suggest that the relationship between lower SSS and higher BMI and overeating may be exacerbated by other threats to social standing, such as teasing. Children exposed to multiple social threats may be more susceptible to excess energy intake and obesity than those who experience a single form of social disadvantage.
Reference
Cheon BK, Smith MR, Bittner JMP, Loch LK, Haynes HE, Bloomer BF, Te-Vazquez JA, Bowling AI, Brady SM, Tanofsky-Kraff M, Chen KY, Yanovski JA. Lower subjective social status is associated with increased adiposity and self-reported eating in the absence of hunger due to negative affect among children reporting teasing distress. J Pediatr Psychol DOI: 10.1093/jpepsy/jsae024 (2024)
Learn more about the Division of Population Health Research: https://www.nichd.nih.gov/about/org/dir/dph
Learn more about the Developmental Endocrinology, Metabolism, Genetics and Endocrine Oncology group: https://www.nichd.nih.gov/about/org/dir/affinity-groups/DEMG-EO
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