Accuracy of Perceptions of Overweight and Relation to Self-Care Behaviors Among Adolescents With Type 2 Diabetes and Their Parents

  1. Asheley Cockrell Skinner, PHD12,
  2. Morris Weinberger, PHD13,
  3. Shelagh Mulvaney, PHD4,
  4. David Schlundt, PHD4 and
  5. Russell L. Rothman, MD, MPP4
  1. 1Health Policy and Administration, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
  2. 2Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
  3. 3Center for Health Services Research, Durham VA Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina
  4. 4Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee
  1. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Skinner, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB 7411, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7411. E-mail: asheley{at}unc.edu

Abstract

OBJECTIVE—To examine how adolescents with type 2 diabetes and their parents/primary caregivers perceive the adolescents’ weight and the relationship of those perceptions to diet and exercise behaviors and perceived barriers to healthy behaviors.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—Interviews were conducted with adolescents and their parents about perceptions of the adolescents’ weight, diet, and exercise behaviors, as well as barriers to engaging in healthy diet and exercise behaviors. Interviews were linked with clinic records to provide BMI.

RESULTS—A total of 104 parent-adolescent dyads participated. Parents and adolescents typically perceived the adolescents’ weight as less severe than it actually was. For parents and adolescents, underestimating the adolescents ’ weight was associated with poorer diet behaviors and more perceived barriers to following healthy diet or exercise behaviors.

CONCLUSIONS—Addressing misperceptions of weight by adolescents and their parents may be an important first step to improving weight in these patients.

Footnotes

  • Published ahead of print at http://care.diabetesjournals.org on 13 November 2007. DOI: 10.2337/dc07-1214.

    The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked “advertisement” in accordance with 18 U.S.C Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.

    • Accepted November 2, 2007.
    • Received June 26, 2007.
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  1. Published online before print November 13, 2007, doi: 10.2337/dc07-1214 Diabetes Care February 2008 vol. 31 no. 2 227-229
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