Research Article
Effects of Self-efficacy on Health Behavior and Body Weight
Faghri P1*, Simon J1, Huedo-Medina T1 and Gorin A21Department of Allied Health Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
2Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
- *Corresponding Author:
- Pouran D Faghri, MD
MS, FACSM, Director
University of Connecticut Center for Environmental Health and Health Promotion
University of Connecticut
358 Mansfield Road
U-2101 Koons Hall
Room 318, Storrs, Connecticut, USA
Tel: 860-486-0018
Fax: 860-486-5375
E-mail: Pouran.Faghri@uconn.edu
Received date: October 31, 2016; Accepted date: November 26, 2016; Published date: December 09, 2016
Citation: Faghri P, Simon J, Huedo-Medina T, Gorin A (2016) Effects of Self-efficacy on Health Behavior and Body Weight. J Obes Weight Loss Ther 6:329. doi: 10.4172/2165-7904.1000329
Copyright: © 2016 Faghri P, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Objective: Overweight and obesity is a major public health in the U.S. Self-efficacy plays a significant role in health behavior (exercise and diet) and lack of could contribute to obesity. Our purpose was to evaluate perceived self-efficacy as it relates to eating, exercise and BMI in individuals with overweight and obesity.
Methods: 99 employees from 4 nursing-homes in Northeast U.S. participated, all with a body mass index (BMI)>25.0 kg/m2. Eating and exercise self-efficacy (Eat-SE, Ex-SE), Healthy Eating Scores (HES), and physical activity (PA) were assessed using questionnaire responses. Correlation and mediation analysis examined the influence of Eat-SE and Ex-SE on PA, HES and BMI.
Results: Higher HES predicted higher Eat-SE (p=0.02) and in turn, a lower BMI (p=0.02). Increased frequencies of moderate and vigorous PA predicted higher Ex-SE (p=0.01, p=0.00). Moderate PA further predicted lower BMI (p=0.05). 44% of the total effect of vigorous PA on BMI was mediated by Ex-SE (p=0.01).
Conclusion(s): Our models combining self-efficacy and behavioral variables captured variations in BMI in overweight and obese individuals. Future obesity interventions should incorporate improvement in self-efficacy for overcoming barriers to weight management.
