Adolescent Report of Lifestyle Counseling

Abstract Background: Physician counseling on lifestyle factors has been recommended as one way to help combat the obesity epidemic in the United States. The aim of this study was to examine the frequency of lifestyle counseling among healthy weight, overweight, and obese adolescents and determine the contributions of adolescent weight and physical activity. Methods: Self-reported surveys on dietary and physical activity counseling, along with measured height, weight, and physical activity data by accelerometry were collected on 76 adolescents ages 11–14 years. General linear models tested for associations of reported lifestyle counseling by weight category, adjusting for physical activity, age, gender, race/ethnicity, and parent education. Results: Half (47%) of the subjects were overweight or obese. Frequency of lifestyle counseling varied by weight category, with obese adolescents reporting greater amounts of lifestyle counseling across all topics than their peers. Obese adolescents received more dietar...