Words like 'Fatso' Are Harmful

By Staff -- School Library Journal, 9/1/2007

Words like “fatso” and “porky” maybe more harmful than you know. The teasing that overweight children and teens receive from their peers can lead to low self-esteem; poor school performance; avoidance of physical activity; and, in some cases, depression and suicide, says a new report in the July issue of Psychological Bulletin.

Teachers and parents who treat overweight kids differently also could be contributing to immediate, possibly lasting harm. “It is important to approach childhood obesity with an understanding of the social stigma that obese youth face, which is pervasive and can have serious consequences for emotional and physical health,” the study says.

Rebecca M. Puhl, a Yale University clinical psychologist, and her colleague Janet Latner at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, discovered that taunts, shoves, and social isolation can lead to emotional and physical harm in childhood and possibly later-in-life. These are additional problems from the negative health consequences of being overweight. A copy of the report is available here.