歧視肥胖者的信息可能會讓減肥效果適得其反

The goal to lose weight is the most popular New Year’s resolution, as more than two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

一項新研究發現, 媒體所提供的一些指責肥胖者的信息可能會讓他們的體重有增無減。這些信息把超重者看成懶惰、意志薄弱和自我放縱的人，認爲他們會導致醫療成本的增加。那些認爲自己超重的女性在看了有關指責肥胖者的文章之後，控制自身飲食的能力會下降。

However, before launching into a new diet, caveat emptor, as some new findings by University of California - Santa Barbara researchers suggest many directives may be counterproductive.

研究表明，文章和廣告中所暗示的肥胖症只和人的自控能力有關的這種消息，會使體重超重的人感到更加無助，從而更加無法控制自己的飲食。

In a new study, psychology professor Dr. Brenda Major discovered that the weight-stigmatizing messages presented by the media —the ones that characterize overweight individuals as lazy, weak-willed, self-indulgent and contributing to rising health care costs —may be tipping the scales in the wrong direction. Major believes that some of the approaches may actually lead to weight gain.

研究人員指出，如果有關減肥方面的信息能夠把重點放在良好的健康和身體鍛鍊上，而不是關注體重和體重指數，那麼所收到的效果將會更好。