Facilitating and Impeding Factors in Successful Weight Control among the Adolescents with Obesity or Overweight: A Qualitative Study

Document Type : Original Article (s)

Authors

1 Associate Professor, Pediatric Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

2 Professor, Pediatric Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

3 MSc, Pediatric Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

4 Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Department of Critical Care Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

5 Professor, Hypertension Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

6 Assistant Professor, Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

10.48305/jims.2022.24142.0

Abstract

Background: As overweight and obesity in children and adolescents continue to increase, this study was designed to explore the factors that facilitate or hinder weight control in obese and overweight adolescents.Methods: This qualitative study was carried out as a personal interview with 12 adolescents aged between 12 and 18 years who had lost weight successfully and unsuccessfully, from the clinic at the Children's Cardiac Research Center at the Isfahan Cardiovascular Research Institute, in 2019. We used a purposeful sampling method and a qualitative analysis method to analyze the data.Findings: Seven categories consisting of willpower and perseverance, support and encouragement of others, tendencies to beauty, lack of a rush to achieve results, adequate physical activity, understanding the disadvantages of obesity, and understanding the benefits of weight loss were identified as facilitator factors in this study. Seven other factors were reported as inhibitors of weight loss, including misconceptions, a lack of family cooperation in lifestyle modification, lack of awareness about the effects of obesity, concern about dietary restrictions, lack of management and supervision of school cafeterias, parental misbehavior in handling adolescents with overweight or obesity, and their psychological damages.Conclusion: The results of the present study show that in order to bring adolescents to the ideal weight, individual, environmental and familial factors and the interaction between them should be considered. The findings of this study could be used by health officials and policy makers to develop programs to prevent and control overweight and obesity.

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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 29 November 2022
  • Receive Date: 03 December 2021
  • Revise Date: 27 April 2024
  • Accept Date: 29 November 2022