“Do we have to lose weight?”: Puerto Ricans give their opinion about obesity and about obese people. give. Walters-Pacheco, Kattia Z. . University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras (Puerto Rico), ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2007. 3262161.
ABSTRACT
The percentage of obese people in Puerto Rico is over 50%. This data is alarming given the consequences of obesity on people's physical and mental health. There are few studies on the topic in the country none which focused on the opinion of Puerto Ricans on this health condition. Exploring that perception was the focus of this study.
Research objectives were: (a) What is the definition of obesity of 200 Puerto Rican adults? (b) What criteria do people use to identify a person who is obese? (c) What is their perception of the characteristics, attributes and possibilities of obese people? (d) What knowledge do people have of prevention or treatment aids for obesity? and (e) What is the relationship between the socio-demographic characteristics of the sample and their perception of obese people? Two hundred individuals who completed a self-administered questionnaire participated in this study. Eight of them participated in an interview. Participants were over 21, Puerto Rican and lived in the San Juan metropolitan area. The sample was chosen based on availability. People's responses demonstrate the importance that is still placed on the medical model since the majority of participant's defined obesity using the Body Mass Index as reference. The physical aspect of the person who is obese (for example: fat on the body and midriff) was also mentioned as criteria. In general terms, half of the people who responded to the questionnaire had positive perceptions about obese people; while the other half had negative perceptions. Participants knew about public and/or private efforts to prevent and/or treat obesity in Puerto Rico but few used such services. A relationship was found between some socio-demographic characteristics of the sample (ex.: age and yearly individual income) and their perception of the people who are obese. Suggestions for other studies and for interventions related to prevention and attention to obesity are presented.