Bloomington, Indiana – Adolescence moves fast. Bodies change. Emotions intensify. Social circles shift. In that fragile stretch of life, young people begin piecing together who they are. For many, that process unfolds under the weight of judgment about their bodies. Researchers at Indiana University say those judgments do more than bruise feelings — they can leave lasting biological marks.
New research from Indiana University shows that weight-based teasing and stigma do not improve health outcomes. Instead, they contribute to chronic stress that can damage the body over time. The findings challenge a long-standing cultural belief that shame can motivate people to adopt healthier behaviors.
Jennifer Cullin, an assistant professor of anthropology and human biology in the College of Arts and Sciences at Indiana University Bloomington, studies how social experiences become biologically embedded. During childhood and adolescence, she explains, identity is still forming. How others treat a young person, whether with acceptance or ridicule, can shape how they see themselves.
When stigma enters the picture, something deeper can take hold. Cullin’s work focuses on what scientists call “allostatic load,” the cumulative wear and tear on the body caused by repeated stress. Teasing, bullying, or subtle social rejection can activate stress hormones designed for emergencies. But unlike a short-term threat, social stress does not simply pass. It can linger, building quietly over time.
In a recent study published in Social Science & Medicine, Cullin documented links between weight-based teasing and measurable health effects among U.S. youth, including higher blood pressure, increased inflammation, and disrupted eating patterns. The research found that frequent experiences of fat stigma predicted poorer health outcomes later, even after accounting for actual body fat.
Context, however, mattered. In communities where larger bodies were more common, the relationship between stigma and poor health was weaker. In areas where obesity was less common, the health consequences of stigma were strongest. The findings suggest that biology and culture interact closely — what a society defines as “normal” can influence both perception and physiology.
Cullin’s earlier research, conducted with Provost Professor Andrea Wiley and published in the American Journal of Biological Anthropology, involved 175 undergraduate students from 38 Indiana counties. Participants completed surveys measuring experiences of fat stigma, while researchers assessed indicators related to heart health, metabolism, and immune function. The results reinforced the same pattern: stigma itself, not simply body size, was associated with stress-related health strain.
The work also disputes several common assumptions. Not all individuals with higher body fat experience poor metabolic health, and some thin individuals do. Research does not support the idea that shaming leads to sustained weight loss. In fact, stigma has been linked to weight gain, disordered eating, and elevated stress. Nor is weight determined solely by willpower; genetics, environment, and social conditions all play roles.
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Cullin argues that treating weight as a moral failing overlooks the complexity of human biology. More importantly, it ignores the evidence that stigma can cause harm. Adolescence is already a defining period. Layering shame onto that developmental stage, the research suggests, risks embedding stress in ways that follow young people long into adulthood.
