Journal of Obesity & Weight Loss Therapy
Open Access

Abstract

Childhood obesity is an increasingly common pathology that has already reached alarming levels in children and adolescents. The phenomenon is worrying because childhood obesity is a predictor of obesity during adulthood and it has also been associated with physical and psychological problems (Quattropani, MC. & Buccheri, T. 2013, in press ). It has been shown that childhood obesity has a multifactorial aethiopathogenesis (AAP. 2003) because of genetic, biological, neurological, neuroendocrine, psychological, environmental and socio-cultural factors which play an important role in increasing weight and hunger and in developing unhealthy behaviors and habits. Psychodiagnostic evaluation represents the first step to structure a prevention program following a multidisciplinary and integrated perspective. The present work is a preliminary study that aims to evaluate obese children in different perspectives, individual, relational, medical, and psychological. The study involved 32 families with overweight/obese children; questionnaires were administered to the parents: Socio- demographic questionnarie, questionnaire about eating and physical habits, family nutrition and physical activity interview, eating disorder inventory II (Rizzardi et al. 1995), parenting styles dimensions questionnaire (Confalonieri et al. 2009), questionnaire about eating and physical habits of children and QUIT (Italian Questionnaire for Temperament). Questionnaires were administered to the sample however only 15 families completed evaluation; fathers of other families didn?t answer the questions for different reasons (lack of will, contrasts with wife, and lack of time). FNPA screening tool evaluated familial environment and habits, only 15.6% of the sample gave a low FNPA total score showing unhealthy lifestyles and habits. Other data are still in progress.

Biography

Buccheri Teresa is completing her Ph.D. at the age of 30 years from University of Messina, after graduation at ?La Sapienza? University of Rome. She is psychologist, psychotherapist, expert in familial psychotherapy and eating disorders. She is an expert witness for the court. Since she has become psychotherapist, she is working with individual and familial therapies in private practice.