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Subjective evaluation of psychosocial well-being in children and youths with overweight or obesity: the impact of multidisciplinary obesity treatment

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Abstract

Purpose

To investigate the effects of a multidisciplinary childhood obesity treatment programme on subjective evaluations of psychosocial well-being and quality of life.

Methods

This longitudinal observational study included 1291 children, adolescents and young adults, 6–22 years of age, with overweight or obesity. At entry and after 2–82 months of obesity treatment, the patients evaluated the following domains of psychosocial well-being on a visual analogue scale: quality of life, mood, appetite, bullying, motivation for weight loss and body image satisfaction. The degree of overweight was calculated using a body mass index (BMI) standard deviation score (SDS) at each visit.

Results

At entry, the mean BMI SDS was 2.81 (range: 1.35–6.65, 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 2.44–3.18). After a median of 14 months of treatment, the median reduction in BMI SDS was 0.29 (95% CI: 0.26–0.31, p < 0.0001). Improvements were observed in the domains of quality of life, mood, appetite, bullying and body image satisfaction (p < 0.0001). Larger reductions in BMI SDS were associated with greater improvements in the domains of quality of life (p = 0.001), mood (p = 0.04) and body image satisfaction (p < 0.0001), independent of BMI SDS at entry. However, improvements in psychosocial well-being were also observed in those increasing their BMI SDS (n = 315).

Conclusions

In a large group of children and youths, psychosocial well-being improved during a multidisciplinary childhood obesity treatment programme, irrespective of the degree of obesity at treatment entry. Greater reductions in BMI SDS were associated with greater improvements in psychosocial well-being, but even in the group increasing their BMI SDS improvements were observed.

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Abbreviations

BMI:

Body mass index

HRQoL:

Health-related quality of life

QoL:

Quality of life

SDS:

Standard deviation score

TCOCT:

The children’s obesity clinic treatment

VAS:

Visual analogue scale

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Acknowledgements

This study is part of the research activities in The Danish Childhood Obesity Biobank (ClinicalTrials.gov ID No.: NCT00928473), TARGET (The Impact of our Genomes on Individual Treatment Response in Obese Children, www.target.ku.dk) and BIOCHILD (Genetics and Systems Biology of Childhood Obesity in India and Denmark, www.biochild.ku.dk).

Funding

This study was supported by the Region Zealand Health Sciences Research Foundation, the Innovation Fund Denmark (Grant Numbers 0603-00484B and 0603-00457B), Region Zealand, the Aase & Ejnar Danielsen’s Foundation and the Novo Nordisk Foundation (Grant Number NNF15OC0016544).

Author information

Author notes

  1. Cilius Esmann Fonvig and Sophie Amalie Hamann have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Paediatrics, The Children´S Obesity Clinic, Copenhagen University Hospital Holbæk, Smedelundsgade 60, 4300, Holbæk, Denmark

    Cilius Esmann Fonvig, Sophie Amalie Hamann, Tenna Ruest Haarmark Nielsen, Mia Østergaard Johansen, Helle Nergaard Grønbæk, Pernille Maria Mollerup & Jens-Christian Holm

  2. Section of Metabolic Genetics, Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Cilius Esmann Fonvig, Tenna Ruest Haarmark Nielsen & Jens-Christian Holm

  3. Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2200, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Jens-Christian Holm

Authors
  1. Cilius Esmann Fonvig
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  2. Sophie Amalie Hamann
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  3. Tenna Ruest Haarmark Nielsen
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  4. Mia Østergaard Johansen
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  7. Jens-Christian Holm
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Contributions

CF and JH designed the study. HG and JH developed the method of assessing the psychosocial well-being. JH developed the TCOCT protocol and is the founder of The Danish Childhood Obesity Biobank. CF, TN, PM and JH collected the data. CF, SH and JH analysed and interpreted the data. CF and SH drafted the initial manuscript. TN, MJ, HG and PM participated in the interpretation of the data and in writing the manuscript. All authors critically revised the manuscript and approved the final version. All authors can account for all aspects of the study.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Cilius Esmann Fonvig.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Informed consent

All participants gave informed assent. Parents or participants of 18 years of age or older signed an informed written consent prior to enrolment into treatment.

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Fonvig, C.E., Hamann, S.A., Nielsen, T.R.H. et al. Subjective evaluation of psychosocial well-being in children and youths with overweight or obesity: the impact of multidisciplinary obesity treatment. Qual Life Res 26, 3279–3288 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11136-017-1667-5

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