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PubMedDate not supplied

The relationship between body weight perceptions, weight control behaviours and smoking status among adolescents.

OBJECTIVES: This paper examines the relation between body weight perceptions, weight control behaviours and smoking status among a representative sample of Ontario students. METHODS: Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the association between smoking status and perception of being overweight, and between smoking status and specific weight control behaviours. RESULTS: Among females, the odds of being a smoker were significantly higher among those who perceived themselves to be overweight and who had employed weight control behaviours in the last 12 months. Among males, the adjusted odds of being a smoker was higher only among those who skipped meals in the past 12 months. CONCLUSIONS: Body weight perceptions and the use of weight control behaviours were significantly associated with predictors of smoking among adolescent females. This suggests a need to incorporate discussion on body weight perception and body image in smoking prevention and cessation programs targeted toward adolescent females.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Religion, weight perception, and weight control behavior.

Religion's relationships with weight perception and weight control behavior were examined using data (3032 adults aged 25-74) from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States. Religion was conceptualized as denomination, religious attendance/practice, religious social support, religious commitment, religious application, and religious identity. Weight perception was conceptualized as underestimating body weight, overestimating body weight, and accurately assessing body weight. Respondents also reported whether they had engaged in any intentional weight loss (yes/no) in the last 12 months. Logistic regression was used, with significant results being set at a p-values of <.01 and <.05. Accurately assessing body weight was the reference category for all weight perception analyses. Women with greater religious commitment and men with greater religious application had greater odds of underestimating their body weight. This relationship remained significant, controlling for age, race/ethnicity, education, and income. Jewish women had greater odds of overestimating their body weight. There were no relationships between religion and weight control behavior. Relationships between religion, weight perception, and weight control behavior illustrate religion's multidimensionality.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Weight perceptions and weight control practices in American Indian and Alaska Native adolescents. A national survey.

OBJECTIVE: To assess weight perceptions and weight control practices among American Indian-Alaska Native adolescents. DESIGN: Survey. SETTING: Nonurban schools from eight Indian Health Service areas. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 13,454 seventh- through 12th-grade American Indian-Alaska Native youths. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: A revised version of the Adolescent Health Survey, a comprehensive, anonymous self-report questionnaire with eating- and body image-related questions. RESULTS: Forty-one percent of the adolescent girls reported feeling overweight, 50% were dissatisfied with their weight, and 44% worried about being overweight. Almost half (48%) had been on a weight-loss diet in the past year, with 27% reporting that they had self-induced vomiting at some time to try to lose weight. Eleven percent reported using diet pills. Girls who reported feeling overweight were more likely to engage in unhealthy weight control practices than were those who felt they were of normal weight or underweight. A larger proportion of boys were satisfied with their weight (68%), with 22% worrying about being overweight. However, compared with rural Minnesota youth, both American Indian girls and boys had greater dissatisfaction with body weight. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that American Indian youth, particularly girls, are dissatisfied with their weight and are worried about being overweight, and that unhealthy weight control practices are common. More attention needs to be placed on developing culturally appropriate weight management programs for Indian youths.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Weight perception and weight-related sociocultural and behavioral factors in Chinese adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Rapid economic development accompanied by imported Western media, advertising, fashion, and lifestyle in mainland China has resulted in shifts in cultural beliefs and beauty ideals in adolescents. The present study focused on understanding relationships among weight perception and weight-related sociocultural and behavioral factors in Chinese adolescents. METHODS: Data collected in 2002 from 6863 middle and high school students and their parents from four large cities in mainland China were used. Weight status was determined by measured weight and height. Weight perception, media exposure, attitudes, and health behaviors were assessed by a structured questionnaire survey. RESULTS: Boys were more likely to describe themselves as either too thin or relatively thin than girls (37.32% vs. 18.79%), while girls more often considered themselves either relatively heavy or too heavy than boys (50.83% vs. 26.54%). Girls who were actually normal or underweight were more likely than boys to describe themselves as either relatively heavy or very heavy (41.6% vs. 11.6%), while boys who were actually normal or overweight were more likely than girls to believe themselves as underweight (30.9% vs. 15.7%). Girls who were frequently exposed to media from Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, and placed high value on their physical appearance, were more likely to be dissatisfied with their body weight, which in turn were more likely to restrict consumption of certain foods, smoke cigarettes, and drink alcohol. Similar results were not observed in boys. CONCLUSIONS: Weight dissatisfaction was prevalent in Chinese adolescents and was significantly related to media exposure, attitudes towards physical appearance, and adoption of certain health-risk behaviors in girls. Our findings underscore the importance of sociocultural influences in shaping realistic body image and have implications for prevention and early intervention for establishing health behavioral practices during adolescence.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Factors associated with BMI, weight perceptions and trying to lose weight in African-American smokers.

This study examined sociodemographic, behavioral and psychosocial factors associated with BMI, weight perceptions and trying to lose weight among African-American smokers (N=600, M=44.2 years, 70% female). Sixty-eight percent of the sample were overweight or obese (sample BMI M=28.0, SD=6.7). Three separate, simultaneous multivariable regression models were used to determine which factors were associated with BMI, weight perceptions and trying to lose weight. Poorer health, female gender and high-school education or higher were significantly associated with higher BMIs (p<0.05). Being female (OR=5.8, 95% CI=3.6-9.3) and having a higher BMI (OR=0.6, 95% CI=0.5-0.6) was associated with perception of overweight and smoking more cigarettes per day (OR=1.0, 95% CI=1.0-1.1), and perceiving oneself as overweight (OR=14.1, 95% CI=8.2-24.2) was associated with trying to lose weight. Participants somewhat underestimated their BMI in their weight perceptions. Those who perceived themselves as overweight were more likely to be trying to lose weight; therefore, increasing participant awareness of actual BMI status may lead to improved weight-control efforts in African-American smokers. Several expected associations with outcomes were not found, suggesting that BMI and weight constructs are not well-understood in this population.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

Effect of thumb anaesthesia on weight perception, muscle activity and the stretch reflex in man.

1. We have confirmed the results of Gandevia & McCloskey (1977) on the effect of thumb anaesthesia on perception of weights lifted by the thumb. Weights lifted by flexion feel heavier and weights lifted by extension feel lighter. 2. The change in size of the long-latency stretch reflex in flexor pollicis longus or extensor pollicis longus after thumb anaesthesia cannot explain the effect on weight perception by removal or augmentation of the background servo assistance to muscular contraction. 3. During smooth thumb flexion, thumb anaesthesia increases e.m.g. activity in flexor pollicis longus and extensor pollicis longus for any given opposing torque. 4. During smooth thumb extension the opposite occurs: e.m.g. activity in both extensor and flexor pollicis longus decreases. 5. Clamping the thumb at the proximal phalanx to limit movement solely to the interphalangeal joint reduces or abolishes the effect of anaesthesia on both weight perception and e.m.g. activity during both flexion or extension tasks. 6. Gandevia & McCloskey's findings on the distorting effects of thumb anaesthesia on weight perception cannot be used to support the hypothesis of an efferent monitoring system of the sense of effort. Our results emphasize the close functional relationship between cutaneous and joint afferent information and motor control.

Anesthesia, Local↗
PubMed1996

Weight perception and the haptic size-weight illusion are functions of the inertia tensor.

The complex effects of mass and volume on weight perception (e.g., the size-weight illusion) were hypothesized to follow simply from invariants of rotational dynamics. In Experiments 1-3, the rotational inertia of wielded, occluded objects was varied independently of mass, size, and torque. Perceived heaviness depended only on rotational intertia. Reanalysis of J. C. Stevens and L. L. Rubin's (1970) study revealed that size's influence on weight perception depends on specific patterns of the eigenvalues of the inertia tensor. These patterns were simulated in Experiments 4-6 with objects of fixed mass, volume, and visible size. Perceived heaviness decreased and increased, respectively, over object sets with the eigenvalue patterns of (a) constant mass, increasing volume and (b) increasing mass, constant volume. Weight perception and the size-weight illusion depend on stimulus invariants, not inference.

Female↗
PubMed1991

Body-weight perceptions and selected weight-management goals and practices of high school students--United States, 1990.

Among adults, overweight is associated with elevated serum cholesterol levels, elevated blood pressure, and noninsulin-dependent diabetes and is an independent risk factor for coronary heart disease. Youth who are overweight and remain overweight as adults may increase their risk for certain chronic diseases in adulthood. However, overemphasis on thinness during adolescence may contribute to potentially harmful weight-management practices and eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. This report presents self-reported body-weight perceptions and selected weight-management goals and practices among high school students in the United States.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Gender differences in body weight perception and weight-loss strategies of college students.

Gender differences in college students' perceptions and satisfaction with body weight were examined. Females tended to perceive themselves as overweight when they were not, failed to see themselves as underweight when they were, and many of those who did not see themselves as even slightly overweight wanted to lose weight. Although males reported some dissatisfaction with their bodies, they tended to want to gain rather than lose weight. Females dieted more frequently than did males, and nearly one-third of the females reported either self-induced vomiting or laxative use as a weight-loss strategy. The relationship between social pressure for female slenderness, dieting, and eating disorders are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

The golf-ball illusion: evidence for top-down processing in weight perception.

Theories of weight illusions have traditionally emphasised either the primary contribution of low-level sensory cues or the role of expectation based on knowledge and past experience. Current models of weight illusions lean quite strongly towards sensory-based interpretations. The current experiment raises a problem for such approaches by generating a weight illusion that is difficult to explain other than by the participants' knowledge. Golfers (who expect a weight difference between ball types) reliably judged practice golf balls to weigh more than real golf balls of the same weight. In contrast, non-golfers (who expect no weight difference between ball types) judged practice and real balls of equal weigh to weight the same. Furthermore, within the group of golfers, those who expected the weights of the two ball types to be the most discrepant prior to lifting tended to report the strongest illusions subsequent to lifting. Because there is no low-level sensory cue between ball types that on its own would signal a weight difference, the current finding suggests that there is a top-down component to weight perception that is based on experience with specific objects.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Ethnic differences in weight loss behavior among secondary school students in Beirut: the role of weight perception.

OBJECTIVES: Assessing the prevalence of weight loss attempts in Beirut, Lebanon, a country characterized by a diversity of ethnic and religious groups and examining the interplay between ethnicity, body mass index (BMI) and weight perception and their relationship to weight loss behavior. METHODS: A school-based survey of risk behaviors conducted among secondary students (grade 10-12) in 1997. Subjects consisted of 827 boys and girls, aged 15 to 23 years, the majority of whom were Moslems (65.4%). Multiple logistic regression was used to estimate the association between ethnicity and weight perception with the likelihood of trying to lose weight controlling for BMI and a number of potential covariates. RESULTS: The prevalence of weight loss attempts was 19.1% and 42.6% in boys and girls respectively. Christians were more likely to perceive themselves as overweight and to attempt weight loss than Moslems across all BMI levels, however this trend was significant in the underweight category. While controlling for BMI did not change appreciably the results observed, after controlling for weight perception, ethnic differences in weight-loss behavior disappeared. CONCLUSION: Findings of the study suggest that whereas actual weight may constitute only partially the driving force for differentials by ethnicity, the perception of body weight acts as a mediating factor in the relationship between ethnicity and weight loss behavior. Understanding the disparities in weight management behavior across various adolescent groups is key to develop culturally appropriate educational and intervention programs for the youths.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

[Body mass index, body weight perception and common mental disorders among university employees in Rio de Janeiro].

OBJECTIVE: We tested the hypothesis that inadequate self-perception of body weight with or without obesity would be associated with common mental disorders (CMD). METHOD: We analyzed cross-sectional data from 4,030 university employees participating in the longitudinal Pró-Saúde Study Phase 1 (1999) in Rio de Janeiro. Participants (22-59 years of age) were invited to fill out a questionnaire that includes an evaluation of common mental disorders by General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). Body mass index (BMI=kg/m2) was calculated based on measured weight and height, and participants self-classified their own current body weight as highly above ideal, slightly above ideal, ideal, slightly below ideal or highly below ideal. RESULTS: Among woman 58.3% of those with body mass index lower than 25.0 kg/m2 considered themselves as being above ideal weight; for men, this proportion was 23.5%. Multivariate logistic regression adjusted for age, income, leisure-time physical activity, self-reported health problem and body mass index, showed that body weight perception highly above ideal had a strong association with common mental disorders among women (OR=1.84, 95%CI=1.22-2.76). For women but not men, body mass index showed a borderline association with common mental disorders (p-trend=0.05) that did not persist after adjustment for income and self-reported health problem. CONCLUSION: Inadequate body weight perception, independent of body mass index, was associated with common mental disorders in women, but not men. One possible explanation for this association may be the socio-cultural pressure placed on women to conform the thinness ideal.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Sex differences in weight perception and nutritional behaviour in adults with cystic fibrosis.

INTRODUCTION: Good nutritional status in cystic fibrosis (CF) is associated with improved clinical status and survival. In some conditions where dietary and pharmacological treatment are important (e.g. diabetes), a combination of eating disorders and failure of treatment compliance has been reported. Cases of eating disorders have been reported in CF. Societal pressures on young women to remain slim may compromise optimum clinical management as women are content to remain underweight. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether women have different perception of their weight than men with CF and whether this manifests in different nutritional behaviour. METHODS: Confidential postal questionnaire to 1870 adults with CF in 1994 known to the Association of Cystic Fibrosis Adults (UK). Participants were asked their own weight and height, and their perception of their weight. Very underweight was defined as < 85% ideal body weight, underweight as 85-94%, normal weight as 95-104%, overweight as 105-114% and very overweight as 115% and over. RESULTS: A significantly higher proportion of women than men who are very underweight (29% vs. 11%) or underweight (41% vs. 15%) saw themselves as being of normal weight or overweight. Conversely, a significantly higher proportion of men than women who were normal weight (42% vs. 19%) saw themselves as underweight. All P-values < 0.01. A significantly higher proportion of people who perceived themselves to be underweight were taking oral or enteral food supplements compared with those who did not (77% vs. 30%, P < 0.05). Multiple logistic regression showed that perception of self as underweight was the strongest predictor of taking oral or enteral food supplements (adjusted odds ratio 2.42), even after adjustment for age, sex, overall severity score, body mass index, and seeing a dietitian in the last year. CONCLUSION: Young women with CF tend to overestimate their weight, and young men with CF underestimate their weight when compared with their actual body weight. Perception of self as underweight is reflected in nutritional behaviour, being a significantpredictor of taking oral and enteral food supplements. People working with young patients with CF should be aware of these sex differences in weight perception, and work with young women and young men with CF to achieve a realistic perception of body weight and realistic nutritional goals. There is a need for further research into body image, weight perception, eating behaviour and adherence to pancreatic enzyme supplementation and oral and enteral food supplementation in young patients with CF.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

A national study of the prevalence of overweight and obesity in 6-12 y-old Swiss children: body mass index, body-weight perceptions and goals.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Swiss children and to obtain information on weight perceptions and weight control practices in this population. DESIGN: Cross-sectional, three-stage, probability-proportionate-to-size cluster sampling. SETTING: Middle schools throughout Switzerland. SUBJECTS: A representative national sample of 595 6-12 y-old schoolchildren. INTERVENTION: Measurement of weight and height; interview on weight perceptions and weight control practices. RESULTS: Body mass index (BMI) was calculated and used as an indicator of overweight. The BMIs of the Swiss children were compared with US, UK, French and Swiss reference data. Depending on which reference data were used, the prevalence of obesity varied between 9.7 and 16.1% and the prevalence of overweight varied between 21.7 and 34.2%. Girls were significantly more likely to consider themselves too fat (26% and 15%, respectively) and to report currently trying to lose weight (30% and 18%, respectively) compared to boys (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of overweight in Swiss children, and its attendant health and social consequences, are important public health concerns. SPONSORSHIP: The Swiss Foundation for Nutrition Research, Zürich, Switzerland.

Body Image↗
PubMed2006

Body mass, weight control behaviours, weight perception and emotional well being in a multiethnic sample of early adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate weight perception, dieting and emotional well being across the range of body mass index (BMI) in a population-based multiethnic sample of early adolescents. DESIGN: Cross-sectional population-based survey. SUBJECTS: In total, 2789 adolescents 11-14 years of age from three highly deprived regional authorities in East London, in 2001. MEASUREMENTS: Data were collected by student-completed questionnaire on weight perception, dieting history, mental and physical health, health behaviours, social capital and sociodemographic factors. Height and weight were measured by trained researchers. Overweight was defined as BMI > or =85th centile and obesity as BMI > or =98th centile. Underweight was defined as BMI< or =15th centile. RESULTS: In all, 73% were from ethnic groups other than white British. Valid BMI were available for 2522 subjects (90.4%) of whom 14% were obese. Only 20% of overweight boys and 51% of overweight girls assessed their weight accurately. Accuracy of weight perception did not vary between ethnic groups. In all, 42% of girls and 26% of boys reported current dieting to lose weight. Compared with white British teenagers, a history of dieting was more common among Bangladeshi, Indian and mixed ethnicity boys and less likely among Pakistani girls. Self-esteem was not associated with BMI in girls but was significantly lower in obese boys than those of normal weight (P=0.02). Within ethnic subgroups, self-esteem was significantly lower in overweight white British boys (P=0.03) and obese Bangladeshi boys (P=0.01) and Bangladeshi girls (P=0.04), but significantly higher in obese black African girls (P=0.01) than those of normal weight. Obese young people had a higher prevalence of psychological distress (P=0.04), except among Bangladeshi teenagers, where overweight and obese young people had less psychological distress than those of normal weight (P=0.02). Birth outside the UK was associated with reduced risk of obesity in girls (P=0.02) but not with history of dieting, weight perception or psychological factors in either gender. CONCLUSION: High levels of current dieting for weight control and inaccurate perception of body mass are common across all ethnic groups. However, dieting history and the associations of obesity with self-esteem and psychological distress vary between ethnic groups. Interventions to prevent or treat obesity in black or minority ethnicity groups must consider cultural differences in the relationship between body mass, self-esteem and psychological distress.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Weight perception and psychological factors in Chinese adolescents.

PURPOSE: To investigate the pattern of weight perception and its relationship with psychological distress among Chinese adolescents. METHODS: A sub-cohort of 2179 healthy Chinese adolescents randomly selected from schools in Wuhan, China, including 1156 boys and 1023 girls 11 to 15 years of age was included in the current study. Weight, height, self-perceptions of weight status, depressive psychological symptoms including anxiety, depression, perceived peer isolation, and other constructs were measured by a structured questionnaire. A General Linear Model was used to compare psychological differences between actual and perceived weight groups. RESULTS: Perceived underweight was more likely to occur in boys, whereas perceived overweight was more likely to occur in girls. Compared with objective body weight status defined by the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) age- and gender-specific body mass index (BMI) cutoffs, girls were more likely to misperceive themselves as overweight, whereas relatively more boys misclassified their weight status as underweight. After adjusting for age, parents' educational attainment, and urban residence, perceived overweight boys and girls were more likely to experience anxiety and depression than perceived normal and underweight subjects (p <.05). Perceived overweight girls and perceived underweight boys experienced higher peer isolation than other groups (p <.05). Significant differences were not found in social support, school connectedness, trouble with teachers, and family disharmony among different weight-perception groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggested distortion of weight perception was prevalent, and may have detrimental psychological influences in Chinese adolescents.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Weight perception, academic performance, and psychological factors in Chinese adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate weight perception and related psychological factors in Chinese adolescents. METHODS: A questionnaire on weight perception, academic performance, stress, hostility, and depression was completed by 6863 middle and high school students. Weight and height were measured. RESULTS: Overweight perception was related to school-related stress and depression in both girls and boys (P<0.01) and to hostility in boys (P<0.01). Perceived over-weight was related to lower GPA in girls only (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Distorted weight perception has a detrimental psychological impact on Chinese adolescents. These findings may contribute to the obesity research and to the development of future effective intervention programs in China.

Achievement↗