Academic

BETTER LIVING THROUGH SELF-DECEPTION: Many Obese People Don?t Want to Lose Weight: A substantial?

By Glenn Reynolds

BETTER LIVING THROUGH SELF-DECEPTION: Many Obese People Don’t Want to Lose Weight:

A substantial proportion of obese people don’t think they’re too fat, new research shows.

Among more than 2,000 obese Dallas County residents surveyed in 2000-2002, 14 percent of African Americans and 11 percent of Hispanics — but just 2 percent of whites — believed that they needed to lose weight, Dr. Tiffany M. Powell of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and her colleagues found.

People who misperceived their body size were happier with their health, and felt healthier, than those who did recognize their obesity; they were also more likely to think they were at low risk of developing high blood pressure or diabetes or having a heart attack during their lifetimes. In fact, two-thirds of people with body size misperception thought they were at low risk of becoming obese.

On the upside, at least they’re experiencing less stress. That’s got to be good for their health, right?

Full post as published by Instapundit.com on October 15, 2010 (boomark / email).