Fatphobia among adolescents: how future health professionals perceive weight-related violence and the influence of social media

Adolescents in technical health training recognize fatphobia as both an individual and structural issue, shaped by social norms and amplified by social media. Although they express empathy toward people with larger bodies, many simultaneously reproduce weight-stigmatizing practices. Technical-vocational schools represent formative spaces where fatphobia is simultaneously reproduced and questioned, making them key environments for integrating educational interventions that promote body diversity, challenge weight-based prejudice, and support the development of more inclusive future health professionals.