De effectiviteit van een multidisciplinaire behandeling in de aanpak van obesitas en psychische problemen bij jongeren.

Abstract

Obesity among youngsters is a growing problem in the Netherlands and the physical and psychological consequences can be severe. There is a great need for a specialised treatment as current treatment mainly focuses on weight reduction and not on a combination of obesity and its psychological consequences. In this study a preliminary evaluation is conducted of a new multidisciplinary, psychiatric treatment program treating youngsters (aged 10 to 17 year) with obesity and psychiatric problems. Ten youngsters where included to compare psychological and physical factors at baseline and follow-up measurement over a period of five months. First results were promising, showing a decrease in social fear and a preliminary stabilisation in weight. However, also a slight increase in depressive symptoms was found. No differences were observed in feeling of self worth, eating pathology and social problems. In interviews the participants reported positive changes in feeling of self worth and less depressive feelings. The positive results that were found were small, probably caused by the small number of participants. In addition, it seems that treatment of obesity and psychiatric problems should be seen as a life style change and therefore treatment should be prolonged. Despite all this, preliminary results were positive. Future research is needed to examine results on the long term.