(How) Does Obesity Harm Academic Performance?

What is it about?

Even when they score the same on ability tests, obese white girls get worse high school grades in than their normal-weight peers, and are rated by teachers as being less academically able as early as elementary school. This is true only in traditionally "female" course subjects like English-- suggesting that obesity may be most harshly judged in settings where girls are expected to be more stereotypically feminine.

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Why is it important?

While over a third of American youth are now above a healthy weight, we know relatively little about when, where, and particularly how obesity affects academic performance. While obesity is often thought of as a health problem, the findings of this study suggest that discrimination may be the primary mechanism through which obesity affects students' success in school.