OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare the internalizing and externalizing symptoms in children and adolescents with and without weight excess. METHOD: Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL-6/18) and Body Mass Index (BMI) have been used to assess 88 individuals from 6 to 18 years of age. The individuals with BMI > 1 sd were considered overweight (53 overweight and 35 eutrophic) and those individuals with CBCL-6/18 T-score > 70 were considered having emotional symptoms. The Mann-Whitney test was used to measure any possible difference in the average BMI, between age averages and mean t-scores obtained in internalizing and externalizing subscales according to the researched groups. Spearman Correlation Index was used to verify the correlation between BMI and T-score averages. RESULTS: Internalizing symptoms have been observed in 14 overweight individuals and in 4 eutrophic individuals. (T-score average: 59.09 and 49.40, respectively, p value = 0.003). Externalizing symptoms have been found in 9 overweight individuals and in 2 eutrophic individuals. (T-score average: 53.71 and 47.91, respectively, p-value = 0.019). There was a positive correlation between BMI and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. CONCLUSION: Psychiatric symptoms have been observed frequently in overweight individuals and the higher is the BMI, the higher is the risk for developing emotional symptoms.
Obesity; childhood; adolescence; behavior disorder
