Abstract
Objective
To identify which English and Spanish terms Latino parents consider motivating, as
well as culturally and linguistically appropriate, for provider use during weight
counseling of overweight and obese Latino youth.
Methods
Latino parent perceptions of common Spanish and English terms for overweight were
discussed with 54 parents in 6 focus groups (3 English, 3 Spanish). Atlas.ti software
was used for qualitative analysis. An initial codebook was used to code passages for
English and Spanish terminology separately. Subsequent changes to the coded passages
and creation of new codes were made by team consensus.
Results
“Demasiado peso para su salud” (too much weight for his/her health) was the only phrase
for excess weight that was consistently identified as motivating and inoffensive by
Spanish-speaking parents. “Sobrepeso” (overweight), a commonly used term among health
care providers, was motivating to some parents but offensive to others. English-speaking
parents had mixed reactions to “unhealthy weight,” “weight problem,” and “overweight,”
finding them motivating, confusing, or insulting. Parents found “fat” “gordo” and
“obese” “obeso” consistently offensive. Most participants found growth charts and
the term “BMI” confusing. Parents consistently reported that providers could enhance
motivation and avoid offending families by linking a child's weight to health risks,
particularly diabetes.
Conclusions
“Demasiado peso para su salud” (too much weight for his/her health) was motivating
to many Spanish-speaking Latino parents. Among English-speaking Latino parents, no
single English term emerged as motivating, well-understood, and inoffensive. Linking
a child's excess weight with increased health risks was motivating and valuable to
many parents regardless of language spoken.
Keywords
To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
Purchase one-time access:
Academic & Personal: 24 hour online accessCorporate R&D Professionals: 24 hour online accessOne-time access price info
- For academic or personal research use, select 'Academic and Personal'
- For corporate R&D use, select 'Corporate R&D Professionals'
Subscribe:
Subscribe to Academic PediatricsAlready a print subscriber? Claim online access
Already an online subscriber? Sign in
Register: Create an account
Institutional Access: Sign in to ScienceDirect
References
- Preventing Childhood Obesity: Health in the Balance.National Academies Press, Washington, DC2005
- Using body mass index to identify overweight children: barriers and facilitators in primary care.Ambul Pediatr. 2007; 7: 38-44
- Parental perceptions of weight terminology that providers use with youth.Pediatrics. 2011; 128: e786-e793
- Recommendations for prevention of childhood obesity.Pediatrics. 2007; 120: S229-S253
- Cultural adaptation for ethnic diversity: a review of obesity interventions for preschool children.Calif J Health Promot. 2011; 9: 40
- The role of culture in the context of school-based BMI screening.Pediatrics. 2009; 124: S50-S62
- Latina mothers’ beliefs and practices related to weight status, feeding, and the development of child overweight.Public Health Nurs. 2011; 28: 107-118
Office of Minority Health; US Department of Health and Human Services. The National CLAS standards. Available at: http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/templates/browse.aspx?lvl=2&lvlID=15. Accessed November 20, 2013.
HealthyPeople.gov; Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Healthy People 2020: Nutrition and Weight Status. Washington, DC: US Dept of Health and Human Services; 2012, 2013. Available at: http://healthypeople.gov/2020/topicsobjectives2020/objectiveslist.aspx?topicId=29. Accessed September 6, 2013.
- Avoiding the term “obesity”: an experimental study of the impact of doctors’ language on patients’ beliefs.Patient Educ Couns. 2009; 76: 260-264
- What’s in a name? Patients’ preferred terms for describing obesity.Obes Res. 2003; 11: 1140-1146
- How pediatricians can improve diet and activity for overweight preschoolers: a qualitative study of parental attitudes.Acad Pediatr. 2009; 9: 172-178
- What words should we use when discussing excess weight?.J Am Board Fam Med. 2010; 23: 606-613
- Parental preferences on addressing weight-related issues in children.Clin Pediatr. 2007; 46: 612-618
- Denver Health Community Health Services BMI Report—Peds.Denver Health, Ambulatory Care Services, Denver, Colo2014
- Prevalence of childhood and adult obesity in the United States, 2011–2012.JAMA. 2014; 311: 806-814
Office of Minority Health; US Department of Health and Human Services. Obesity and Hispanic Americans. Available at: http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/templates/content.aspx?lvl=3&lvlID=537&ID=6459. Accessed November 20, 2013.
- Prevalence and trends of severe obesity among US children and adolescents.Acad Pediatr. 2009; 9: 322-329
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity and overweight. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/childhood.html. Accessed Novermber 20, 2013.
- Parental perceptions of overweight counseling in primary care: the roles of race/ethnicity and parent overweight.Obesity (Silver Spring). 2008; 16: 1794-1801
- Disparities in pediatric preventive care in the United States, 1993–2002.Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2007; 161: 30-36
- Racial and ethnic differences in pediatric obesity-prevention counseling: national prevalence of clinician practices.Obesity (Silver Spring). 2008; 16: 690-694
- Limited English proficiency is a barrier to receipt of advice about physical activity and diet among Hispanics with chronic diseases in the United States.J Am Diet Assoc. 2009; 109: 1769-1774
- Who is counseled to lose weight? Survey results and anthropometric data from 3,149 lower socioeconomic women.J Community Health. 2012; 37: 202-207
- Discussing childhood overweight and obesity with parents: a health communication dilemma.J Child Health Care. 2007; 11: 311-322
- Maternal perception of their overweight children.Public Health Nurs. 2007; 24: 538-546
- The cultural context of obesity: exploring perceptions of obesity and weight loss among Latina immigrants.J Immigr Minor Health. 2012; 14: 1063-1070
- Acculturation, weight, and weight-related behaviors among Mexican Americans in the United States.Ethn Dis. 2007; 17: 643-649
- Body image in Hispanic/Latino vs European American adolescents: implications for treatment and prevention of obesity in underserved populations.J Health Care Poor Underserved. 2010; 21: 823-838
- Underestimation of weight status in Californian adolescents.Child Obes. 2013; 9: 132-136
- Cardiovascular disease knowledge and weight perception among Hispanic and non-Hispanic white women.J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2013; 22: 1009-1015
- Mexican American mothers’ perceptions of childhood obesity: a theory-guided systematic literature review.Health Educ Behav. 2012; 39: 396-404
- Denver Health: a model for the integration of a public hospital and community health centers.Ann Intern Med. 2003; 138: 143-149
Colorado Health Foundation. The Colorado health report card, 2013. Available at: http://www.coloradohealth.org/report_card.aspx. Accessed December 1, 2014.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC Vital Signs. Progress on childhood obesity: many states show declines. August 2013. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/pdf/2013-08-vitalsigns.pdf. Accessed December 1, 2014.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Clinical growth charts, 2009. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/clinical_charts.htm. Accessed December 1, 2014.
- Improving Aging and Public Health Research: Qualitative and Mixed Methods. American Public Health Association and the Gerontological Society of America, Washington, DC2006
- Color-coding improves parental understanding of body mass index charting.Acad Pediatr. 2009; 9: 330-338
Article Info
Publication History
Published online: December 20, 2014
Accepted:
November 14,
2014
Received:
June 4,
2014
Footnotes
Dr Hambidge has received royalties unrelated to this study from Elsevier for editing a general pediatric textbook. The other authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Identification
Copyright
© 2015 Academic Pediatric Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
