Many overweight teenagers do not recognise they are too heavy

More than a third of overweight or obese teenagers don't see themselves as being too heavy and think their weight is about right, according to a UCL study published today in the International Journal of Obesity . The study used data from around 5,000 13-15-year-olds who were asked about their weight and if they thought they were too heavy, about right or too light. Researchers then checked their answers against their Body Mass Index (BMI) to see whether the reality matched the teenagers' perceptions of themselves. Almost three-quarters (73%) of the teenagers had a BMI within the normal-weight range. A fifth (20%) had a BMI in the overweight category and 7% were categorised as obese. Of these around 40% thought they were about the right weight with a very few (0.4%) saying they were too light. Carrying excess weight increases the risk of up to 10 different types of cancer, including cancers of the breast and bowel.