Teens who self-weigh everyday are at risk of depression, body issues: study

Frequently checking your weight on the weighing scale can mess with your mind and put you at risk for mental health issues, according to a new study.

Regular self-weighing can be especially damaging among teenage girls as it can increase the risk of depression, decrease self-esteem, and other body issues, according to a 10-year study by researchers at the University of Minnesota.

"Females who strongly agreed they self-weighed reported engaging in extremely dangerous weight-control behaviors at a rate of 80 percent," said lead author Carly Pacanowski, via Science World Report.

In the study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, the researchers looked at information collected from 2,000 male and female adolescents in the course of the 10-year study. When surveyed how often they use the weighing scale, they found that teenage girls were the most conscious about their weight, self-esteem and body image.

According to a report by Time, they found that adolescent females exhibited depressive symptoms and had increased body satisfaction than other girls who didn't use the weighing scale as much. For the boys, they share the similar views with their female counterparts but were found to have more self-confidence.

Pacanowski and colleagues were concerned about the impact of the study on the weight loss community and how it can balance those who are getting help for obesity and those who think they need help due to their body dissatisfaction. She said teenagers are more prone to eating disorders due to low self-esteem and skewed body image.

"Adolescent obesity is a public health concern, but body dissatisfaction and weight concerns are predictors of eating disorders. This makes it critical that obesity-prevention programs avoid exacerbating these predictors by understanding how behaviors such as self-weighing affect teens," she said.

According to the report by Science World, GPs and clinicians can take steps to ensure their young patients don't obsessively self-weigh themselves every day.

"Clinicians should ask adolescent patients about self-weighing at office visits to determine any benefits or negative outcomes," said Pacanowski. "Noting changes in this behavior over time can be helpful for investigating other, more concerning changes in well-being among young adults."

However, the study did not find a connection between self-weighing and negative impact on mental health via body image and self-esteem, according to Medical News Today. Pacanowski cautions to take appropriate steps when adolescents report that they frequently use the weighing scale.