Abstract

Childhood obesity is not only worrisome for its effects on children’s health but also for its effects on general well-being. This article analyzes the impact of bodyweight on life satisfaction and three potential mechanisms that may explain this relationship among school-aged children. In addition to the traditional ordinary least squares method, we also use an instrumental variable approach to deal with the potential endogeneity of bodyweight. We use mother’s weight as plausible exogenous variation for children’s weight. Using a Chilean sample of boys (n = 2,262) and girls (n = 2,256) aged 9 to 12, we provide suggestive evidence that body mass index, weight and obesity are causality and negatively related to children’s life satisfaction. Our findings also suggest that body-image satisfaction, school bullying victimization, and physical health explain about 50 and 29 percent of the pathway between bodyweight and life satisfaction for girl and boys, respectively. Although, our results do not support gender differences in the bodyweight-life satisfaction association, we do find sizable gender differences in the mechanisms explaining this relationship. Finally, this study outlines some possible policy implications and potential avenues that future research should address. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.