Adherence
Primary care physicians systematically overestimate the mortality risk associated with being overweight (BMI 25–29.9), perceiving a significantly higher risk increase than what current meta-analytic evidence supports.
Physicians should be aware that their perception of mortality risk for overweight patients (BMI 25-29.9) is likely inflated compared to actual population data. This overestimation may lead to unnecessary alarm or aggressive interventions for patients who are not obese. Counseling should focus on overall health metrics rather than BMI categories alone, recognizing that the mortality risk for 'overweight' is modest and inconsistent across studies.
a large majority of PCPs (90%) perceive that being overweight increases all-cause mortality risk, contrasting with findings of clinical guidelines’ authors. PCPs typically estimate a strength of association that substantially exceeds current empirical estimates.
Why this rating
The study uses a robust survey design with a large sample of PCPs (n=192) and compares perceptions against established meta-analyses, though it is observational regarding perceptions.
Source
Primary care physicians’ perceptions of the effects of being overweight on all-cause mortality
Maya B. Mathur et al. · 2022
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