Playground taunts may seem like harmless child's play, but bullying may keep overweight children on the sidelines, making it more difficult for them to shed pounds, University of Florida researchers say.
Most kids are bullied at some point in their lives, but overweight children are more often the targets of bullies' slings and arrows.
About one out of every five children is chronically bullied, said Eric Storch, Ph.D., a UF assistant professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at UF's College of Medicine and the study's lead author.
Either way, bullying spells serious trouble for children's health, Storch said.
Negative attitudes toward exercise can last a lifetime, making it more difficult for overweight children to lose weight and making it easier for them to become obese adults, he added.
"We found that as rates of peer victimization among overweight kids went up, rates of physical activity went down," he said.
Several measures were used to assess how much of a problem bullying was for children and determine whether they were exhibiting signs of depression, anxiety or even behavioral problems as a result.
About one-quarter of the children reported significant problems with bullies during the two weeks preceding the study.
The researchers also found links between bullying and depression, loneliness and anxiety, further explaining why their physical activity rates were low.
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