Carrying excess weight? People may assume you’re American
- Overweight Asians are assumed to live in the US legally unlike slim counterparts
- For unclear reasons, the results were not found for white, black or Latino people
- Researchers think the results challenge the stereotype that Americans are white
- Some 10 studies with 1,000 participants were analyzed in the research review
Alexandra Thompson Health Reporter For Mailonline
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Overweight people are assumed to be American, new research reveals.
People are significantly more likely to presume a heavy Asian person is from the US than someone of a normal weight with the same ancestry, a study review found.
It is also assumed that overweight Asian people live in the US legally, unlike those with a healthy BMI, the research adds.
According to the researchers, this demonstrates being overweight causes people to speculate someone is a naturalized US citizen.
They add their findings challenge the stereotype that Americans are often white.
Overweight people are assumed to be from the US, new research reveals (stock)
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AMERICAN AND BRITISH GIRLS ARE THE FATTEST IN THE WORLD: MORE THAN HALF CARRY DANGEROUS STOMACH FAT
American and British girls are the worst in the world for carrying dangerous stomach fat, research revealed last month.
A study by Auckland University of Technology found more than half of girls in the US and UK are ‘overfat’; putting them at risk of diabetes and cancer.
These children may appear to be of a normal weight, however, having a waist circumference of more than half their height is enough to put them in the danger category.
In the rankings of the world’s 30 most developed countries, US schoolgirls are the fattest, followed by the UK.
On average, almost 87 percent of men and more than three-quarters of women in the list are ‘overfat’; storing their weight around their middle rather than elsewhere on their body.
It raises fresh concerns about female weight gain – particularly around the stomach, which is the most dangerous – at a young age.
How the study was carried out
The researchers, from the University of Washington, analyzed 10 studies where a total of 1,000 college students were shown pictures of people of different races and asked to gauge their country of residence.
Some of the pictures were digitally altered to make the person look overweight or of a healthy weight.
Overweight was defined as having a BMI of more than 25 and a normal weight as a BMI of less than 25.
Overweight people are significantly more likely to be thought of as American
Results reveal that overweight Asian people are significantly more likely to be thought of as American than those of normal weight with the same ancestry.
People also assume overweight Asian people are significantly more likely to live in the US legally than those who are of a healthy weight.
This demonstrates being overweight causes people to presume someone is a naturalized US citizen, the researchers claim.
For unclear reasons, the same results were not found to be true for white, black or Latino people.
The results were published in the journal Psychological Science.
‘Extra weight allows people to be seen as more American’
Study author Caitlin Handron said: ‘In the U.S., there is a strong bias associating American identity with whiteness, and this can have negative consequences for people of color in the U.S.
Co-author Sepna Cheryan added: ‘We found that there was a paradoxical social benefit for Asian Americans, where extra weight allows them to be seen as more American.’
The researchers argue their findings challenge the stereotype that Americans are often white.
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