Cecilia Meza Peña

Ansiedad, Estrés y Obesidad en una muestra de adolescentes de México Anxiety, Stress and Obesity in a sample of adolescents in Mexico

Para analizar la relacion entre sobrepeso/obesidad, genero, ansiedad y estres se realizo un estudio transversal correlacional en donde participaron 849 adolescentes del norte de Mexico. Los analisis de revelaron que las mujeres con sobrepeso y obesidad presentan mayores niveles de estres y de ansiedad, asi como mayor probabilidad de manifestar ambas condiciones. Se concluye que el genero y la obesidad son condiciones de riesgo para la manifestacion de estres y ansiedad. To analyze the relationship between overweight / obesity, gender, anxiety and stress a correlational cross-sectional study was developed, participating 849 teenagers from northern Mexico. The analysis revealed that overweight and obese women have higher levels of stress and anxiety, and that they are more likely to manifest both conditions. It is concluded that gender and obesity are risk conditions for the manifestation of stress and anxiety.

Morbid Obesity and Motivation for Bariatric Surgery/Obesidad Mórbida y Motivación para la Cirugía Bariátrica

Morbid obesity is a disease affecting the health of thousands of people around the world, representing a great economic burden for health services. One of the most effective methods of weight reduction is bariatric surgery; however this procedure is commonly used only after other weight reduction methods have failed. This study explores the importance of certain elements as preand post-surgery motivators, as well as their relevance in the evolution of the bariatric patient. In this qualitative study we analyzed the discourse of 9 morbid obese people who had gone through bariatric surgery to lose weight, to identify their motivation to do the bariatric procedure, as well as doing and keeping changes to their lifestyle after surgery. We found that the most important motivating factors in pre-surgery period are fear of suffering diseases derived from their morbid obesity, and failure of other weight reduction methods; in postsurgery period, the main motivators to do and keep lifestyle changes are family support and desire to be able to do physical activities. We conclude that motivation should be considered in the treatment of bariatric patients, and treated by a psychologist as part of a multidisciplinary team of health experts.

Causal Attribution of Overweight/Obesity and its Relation to BMI and Eating Alteration

The aims of this paper were: 1) to describe the differences in causal attributions of overweight or obesity in two groups of women, one with overweight or obesity and the another with normal weight or underweight, and 2) to generate predictive models for three criterion variables: one dichotomous criterion variable (having or not overweight/obesity), and two continuous criterion variables (body mass index [BMI] and eating alteration). A quota sample with two BMI groups of 217 women (107 with BMI < 25 and 110 with BMI ≥ 25) from Monterrey (Mexico) was collected. The Overeating Questionnaire (O’Donnell & Warren, 2007) was used to measure eating alteration. The condition of overweight/obesity was attributed mainly to putative aspects to the person: bad habits, lack of exercise, consumption of fast food, and lack of will. Three factors were defined from the inter-correlation of causal attributions: dietetic-nutritional, medical and psychological causes. The attributions and their factors were differential, and allowed to predict the dichotomous variable of having o not overweight/obesity, and the continuous variables of BMI and eating alteration. The socioeconomic status correlated to having overweight/obesity and higher BMI, but was independent of educational level. It is suggested that professionals and socio-health and educational institutions persist in the social communication about obesity causes, since this communication influences social representation, which will facilitate the processes of change during intervention.