Self‐Perception of Weight Status in C hinese Nurses and Its Influencing Factors: A Multicenter Cross‐Sectional Survey Study

ABSTRACT

Misperceptions of weight status among nurses might distort expectations for weight control, leading to potentially misleading guidance. This study aimed to assess the agreement between self‐perceived weight status and BMI‐based classification among Chinese nurses, and to evaluate factors associated with perception bias. A convenience sample of 5786 registered nurses from 25 institutions was surveyed between May and September 2021. The mean BMI of nurses in this study was 21.59 ± 3.02 kg/m ² , overweight and obesity accounted for 16.10% and 3.30%, respectively. The self‐perceived overweight and obesity rates among nurses in China were 25.29% and 15.24%, respectively. The Kappa value of the consistency analysis between subjective weight perception and objective BMI was 0.364, and the overall overestimation rate was 35.66%. Factors associated with weight misperception were gender, educational background, number of metabolic diseases, family history of obesity, and physical exercise ( p  < 0.05). In conclusion, self‐perceived weight status showed poor agreement with BMI among Chinese nurses, primarily characterized by overestimation.