ArticleBMC public health2025
Children's views on weight measurement and talking about weight.
Article in BMC public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Children's views of obesity, body size and weight: systematic review of UK qualitative evidence.Journal of epidemiology and community health · 2026Pooled it
- A Path Analysis Revealing Influential Factors of Weight Loss Willingness and Behaviour in 8-15 Years Overweight Children: A Cross-Sectional Investigation.Pediatric obesity · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundParents are considered important in promoting children's healthy weight, but express concern about how to talk to children about weight without harming their wellbeing. However, there is little research with children themselves as to what they expect and want in relation to managing their weight. This study aimed to explore children's views about weight measurement, and whether and how information about their weight should be shared with them.
methodsPrimary school-aged children were recruited through their school to take part in focus groups. Discussions were focused around two tasks: drawing a shared mind map of sources of information about weight; and exploring responses to a structured story about a child's experience of being weighed and measured. The discussions were recorded, transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis.
resultsForty-eight children took part, across eight focus groups. Theme 1 explored how children considered that most weight discussions were peripheral to them, often overheard conversations related to family members' attempts at weight loss. Theme 2 showed how children empathised with the challenges parents face when deciding whether to disclose weight status, in balancing the desire to avoid upsetting children with the desire to be honest and action focussed. Theme 3 summarised children's expectations about what should happen if children are found to have overweight or obesity, emphasising a whole-family approach.
conclusionChildren's views about how and whether to talk about weight varied, but appeared underpinned by the awareness of stigma and belief in individual responsibility and capability for controlling body weight.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.