ABSTRACT:
Objective: Family-based weight teasing is a common and harmful experience among adolescents. However, most research treats the family as a unitary source, with little examination of how weight stigma manifests from different family members. This study examined associations between weight teasing from 11 types of family members with adolescents’ weight bias internalization (WBI), body appreciation, binge eating with loss of control (BE-LOC) and overeating, and unhealthy weight control behaviors.
Methods: A national sample of 1,073 U.S. adolescents (ages 10–17) completed online questionnaires. Hierarchical linear and logistic regressions assessed the incremental predictive value of weight teasing from parents, stepparents, siblings, and extended family, controlling for sociodemographic covariates.
Results: Weight teasing from female relatives—mothers, sisters, stepmothers, aunts, and cousins—was consistently associated with negative adolescent outcomes, including elevated WBI, lower body appreciation, and increased disordered eating. Adolescents with normative body mass index (5th–84.9th percentile) reported the highest rates of family teasing. Teasing from male relatives (e.g., fathers, brothers, grandparents) showed weaker or inconsistent associations.
Conclusions: Weight teasing from specific family members, especially female relatives, has distinct implications for adolescent health. Pediatric providers should screen youth of all body sizes and consider family-level interventions that extend beyond parents to address teasing from siblings and extended relatives.
Keywords weight teasing, family, adolescents, unhealthy eating behaviors, weight bias internalization