In recent years, there’s been a lot of public and academic attention highlighting the stigma and stereotypes associated with obesity. However, there’s been just as much (if not more) discourse dedicated to addressing cultural biases related to mental health. A medical school trainee from New York recently published a brief paper in JAMA Pediatrics about his experience talking with a young patient about his weight, only to be caught off-guard by the boy’s reaction to questions about his medication use. Overall, a good reminder that stigma and bias regarding weight and health go beyond the numbers on the scale.
GB