Which is worse: feeling fat or being fat? Well, according to recent studies, feeling fat is far worse than being it.

Two studies point toward this conclusion. The first, which can be found at this link (click here), found that the quality of life of adolescents who think they are too fat is worse than for adolescents who really are obese. This was a result of the all Germany Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS) of the Robert Koch Institute.

In the course of the KiGGS study, almost 7000 boys and girls aged between 11 and 17 years were weighed and asked about their self-assessment, ranging from “far too thin” to “far too fat.” In addition, they all completed a questionnaire about quality of life. As a result of their analysis, the scientists established that about three quarters of adolescents were of normal weight. Yet almost 55% of the girls, but just under 36% of the boys thought that they were “too fat,” when only about 18% of the adolescents were actually overweight and 7% to 8% of the adolescents were underweight.

It is true that research shows the quality of life is lower in obese adolescents. However, this correlates to a large extent with self-evaluation, according to this study. Apparently, if adolescents think they are “far too fat,” they forfeit a lot of their quality of life, whatever their actual weight. Studies show that this is particularly true for girls. On the other hand, if they consider their weight “just right,” their quality of life is the same as if they were of normal weight, even if this is not true.

The study also states that the proportion of adolescents who think they are overweight has been increasing more rapidly in recent years than the proportion of those who really are overweight.

In a second study, to be released soon in the Journal of Adolescent Health, findings will show that teens who think they are overweight are more likely to try and commit suicide. The article will be entitled “Perceived Overweight, BMI, and Risk for Suicide Attempts: Findings from the 2007 Youth Risk Behavior Survey.”

The authors are Monica H. Swahn, Megan R. Reynolds, Melissa Tice, Maria C. Miranda-Pierangeli, Courtney R. Jones, & India R. Jones.

I thank my colleague Ken Pope, Ph.D. for forwarding the abstract which staes:

“Among U.S. youth (N = 14,041), perceived (odds ratio [OR]adj. = 1.45, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.18-1.72) and actual overweight (ORadj. = 1.31, 95% CI: 1.07-1.60) were associated with suicide attempts in analyses controlling for demographic characteristics and potential confounders. There is a need to better understand associations between perceived and actual overweight and risk for suicide attempts and to develop appropriate strategies for prevention.”

In addition, the author note states that correspondence may be sent to Monica H. Swahn, Ph.D., Institute of Public Health, Georgia State University, P.O. Box 3995, Atlanta, GA 30302-3995; MSwahn@gsu.edu.

These are important findings, indeed, and are a cause for pause among professionals who treat both weight and eating disorders issues.