On the Unequal Burden of Obesity: Obesity’s Adverse Consequences Are Contingent on Regional Obesity Prevalence

Obesity has adverse consequences for those affected. We tested whether the association between obesity and its adverse consequences is reduced in regions in which obesity is prevalent and whether lower weight bias in high-obese regions can account for this reduction. Studies 1 and 2 used data from the United States (N = 2,846,132 adults across 2,546 counties) and United Kingdom (N = 180,615 adults across 380 districts) that assessed obesity’s adverse consequences in diverse domains: close relationships, economic outcomes, and health. Both studies revealed that the association between obesity and its adverse consequences is reduced (or absent) in high-obese regions. Study 3 used another large-scale data set (N = 409,837 across 2,928 U.S. counties) and revealed that lower weight bias in high-obese regions seems to account for (i.e., mediate) the reduction in obesity’s adverse consequences. Overall, our findings suggest that obesity’s adverse consequences are partly social and, thus, not inevitable.