Chubby kids bullied more often

The danger of bullying has been making headlines recently, and now a new study shows heavy kids are more likely to be picked on than their normal-weight peers.

The study confirms other research that chubby children are more likely to be the victims of bullying. About one-third of kids in the USA weigh too much.

Researchers at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor analyzed the bullying incidents of 821 children ages 8 to 11.

The study, reported today online in Pediatrics, found that obese children were more likely to be bullied than normal-weight peers, regardless of gender, race, socioeconomic status, school demographic profile, social skills or academic achievement.

"This study speaks to the deep prejudice against children who are obese," says lead author Julie Lumeng, assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Michigan. "They are viewed as lazy and lacking in self-control, but we know the reasons for obesity are so much more complex than that."

Other studies show that obese children who are bullied experience more depression, anxiety and loneliness than their peers, Lumeng says.

Parents need to talk to their children about not bullying their peers for any reason, she says. "Didn't we all hear from our mothers that if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all?"

She advises parents who have overweight or obese children to "keep the door open so that your child will feel comfortable talking to you about how other kids are treating them."