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The Global Pandemic of Obesity: Psychological Processes, Perspectives, and Treatments for Obesity Management

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Health Behavior, Chronic Disease and Health Promotion".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 August 2023) | Viewed by 3604

Special Issue Editors

1. Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, 20145, Milan, Italy
2. Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan, 20123 Milan, Italy
Interests: health psychology; lifestyle; acceptance and commitment therapy; obesity; behavioral change
1. Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS, Psychology Research Laboratory, 20145 Milan, Italy
2. Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan, 20123 Milan, Italy
Interests: obesity rehabilitation; psychological health; emotional eating; emotional regulation; psychological flexibility; acceptance and commitment therapy; healthy lifestyle

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Obesity is one of the most serious health problems in global public health. Recent estimates have pointed out that over the last few decades of the 1900s, obesity reached epidemic proportions, and its prevalence is still rising. Defined as an excess of body fat, obesity is a significant risk factor for a plethora of physical, psychological, and social problems, all of which can heavily impact health, quality of life, and global functioning. Given the complex nature of the phenomenon, comprehensive multidisciplinary and multi-component lifestyle interventions for the management of obesity in adults are recommended, in which the psychological component is crucial. Even if such programs have been recognized as effective in promoting healthy lifestyle adoption, the maintenance of behavioral change remains challenging. This evidence has spurred research to investigate which factors represent barriers to weight loss maintenance and which factors may influence the adoption of healthy lifestyle habits. In addition, researchers are required to plan and develop effective treatments for long-standing weight loss.

This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) focuses on the psychological processes related to obesity, involved in the onset and maintenance. Special emphasis will be provided to deepen the role of psychological processes that may affect actual eating behaviors. Papers addressing this topic, as well as contributions that include advanced treatment perspectives are welcomed to this issue.

Dr. Roberto Cattivelli
Dr. Anna Guerrini Usubini 
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • obesity rehabilitation
  • psychological processes
  • process-based therapy
  • healthy lifestyle
  • behavioral change
  • eating disorders
  • emotional eating
  • food addiction
  • eating addiction

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 999 KiB  
Article
Can Nutritional Status in Adults Be Influenced by Health Locus of Control?
by Wojciech Gruszka, Aleksander J. Owczarek, Mateusz Glinianowicz, Monika Bąk-Sosnowska, Jerzy Chudek and Magdalena Olszanecka-Glinianowicz
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(23), 15513; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315513 - 23 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1133
Abstract
The external health locus of control (HLC) is based on an assumption that obtained health results depend on the influences of external factors. As for the internal HLC—that is the effect of our own actions and capabilities. Little is known regarding how the [...] Read more.
The external health locus of control (HLC) is based on an assumption that obtained health results depend on the influences of external factors. As for the internal HLC—that is the effect of our own actions and capabilities. Little is known regarding how the HLC can influence body weight or the occurrence of visceral obesity. The study aimed to assess the relationship between the health locus of control and nutritional status in adults. The study included 744 adults (452 women, 292 men; 2.8% underweight, 43.8% normal weight, 29.7% overweight, and 23.7% obese). In addition to anthropometric measurement and socio-demographic data, the health locus of control, using the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale (MHLC) by Wallston K, Wallston B, and DeVellis R, was assessed. The percentage of subjects with an internal HLC did not differ significantly between obese, overweight, and normal-weight groups. However, the percentage of subjects with an external HLC—dependent on the impact of others—was significantly higher in both men and women with obesity than in corresponding overweight and normal-weight groups (p < 0.01). Yet, the percentage of subjects with an external HLC subject to the impact of chance was significantly higher among overweight and obese women than in those of normal weight (p < 0.05) only. Women with overweight or obesity, with external health locus of control, experienced both the impact of others and of chance more often than women with normal weight. However, men with overweight and with obesity more often had external health locus of control influenced only by others. Full article
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13 pages, 617 KiB  
Article
Association of Diet, Body Mass Index, and Lifestyle on the Gastrointestinal Health Risk in a Sample of Adults
by Reyna Sámano, Fernanda Esparza-Juárez, Gabriela Chico-Barba, Erika González-Medina, Bernarda Sánchez-Jiménez and María Hernández-Trejo
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(17), 10569; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191710569 - 25 Aug 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1730
Abstract
Gastrointestinal functional disorders are characterized by abnormalities in motility with visceral hypersensitivity, representing a global public health problem. We aimed to determine whether eating habits, lifestyle characteristics, and body mass index (BMI) are associated with gastrointestinal health risk. The Gastrointestinal Health (GIH) test [...] Read more.
Gastrointestinal functional disorders are characterized by abnormalities in motility with visceral hypersensitivity, representing a global public health problem. We aimed to determine whether eating habits, lifestyle characteristics, and body mass index (BMI) are associated with gastrointestinal health risk. The Gastrointestinal Health (GIH) test of the World Gastroenterology Organization (WGO) and the Roma IV criteria were applied. We obtained information on food consumption habits and aerobic exercise, among other variables. Not exercising regularly, drinking water and eating vegetables less than recommended, having high body weight, and taking symptomatic medication were variables that explained 73% of the probabilities of not having good GIH (R2 = 0.734). According to Rome IV criteria, women had a 50% higher risk than men of having functional bowel disorder (RR 1.6, 95% CI: 1.04, 2.45). Among the men studied, eating few or no vegetables and drinking less than 1 L of water daily was more frequent; however, the women had significantly more intestinal symptoms. In addition, constipation was higher among women than men (p = 0.020). All of the above explains the prognostic value of eating habits and the importance of paying attention to body weight to reduce the risk of gastrointestinal disease. Full article
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