By Philip Baiden and Catherine LaBrenz
School of Social Work
A new study from the University of Texas at Arlington sheds light on a distressing reality: Adolescents who perceive themselves as overweight are more likely to consider self-harm than those who do not, irrespective of their actual weight. This revelation challenges our understanding of mental health risks and underscores the urgent need for intervention in how young people perceive their bodies.
Published in the peer-reviewed journal Psychiatry Research, the study analyzed data from over 39,000 adolescents aged 14 to 18, obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey. The research accounted for demographic factors, physical activity, substance use history, victimization and mental health, based on adolescent self-reports between 2015 and 2021. Even after accounting for known risk factors for suicidal ideation such as bullying, cyberbullying, substance use and feelings of hopelessness, we found in our research a strong link between weight perception and suicidal ideation.
