Why do normal weight young women look for diet-therapy? Findings from a pilot study in a clinical and non-clinical population

Development of Body Weight Management Among the Hungarian Population

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

Nowadays, body weight management has gained significant consumer attention due to the health megatrend. It plays a key role in preventing diseases, maintaining health, and creating a balanced diet, as well as in mental and physical health. Overweight and obesity are serious problems that can result in various non-communicable diseases; thus, managing the body weight of those who are overweight or obese without pathological changes would help reduce the prevalence of these diseases. By reducing body weight, not only individual health expenses but also public health costs could be reduced. To do so, it is necessary to assess at what levels consumers perceive their own health status, as well as the extent to which they pay attention to body weight management. Our research aimed to contribute to the foundation of public intervention programs by exploring some characteristics of body weight management among Hungarian consumers.

METHODS

We used a large-sample questionnaire survey involving a total of 550 people. Various statistical methods were used to analyze the data, including descriptive statistics, association tests, and hypothesis tests.

RESULTS

According to our results, those who want to lose weight are more engaged in managing their body weight than those who are satisfied with their weight or who want to gain weight, often aiming to reach an ideal weight through diet and exercise, and are willing to invest more in healthier lifestyles, both in terms of their diet and physical activity. In this regard, we did not find significant differences between the genders.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on our findings, we can conclude that dietitians and doctors should play a more active role in guiding lifestyle changes since the majority of our respondents do not consider them credible sources of information on healthy eating, and they do not consult them on this topic. On the other hand, however, a much larger proportion seek information from them regarding regular physical activity, and after personal trainers, they are considered the second most authentic source of information.

High frequency of psychopathology in subjects wishing to lose weight: an observational study in Italian subjects

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the frequency of psychiatric disorders in subjects wishing to lose weight categorized according to BMI.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING

An academic outpatient clinical nutrition service in Italy.

SUBJECTS

A total of 207 subjects (thirty-nine men and 168 women; mean age: 38·7 (sd 14·1) years) consecutively attending the study centre for the first time between January 2003 and December 2006.

RESULTS

In the entire study group, eighty-three (40 %) subjects had a psychiatric disorder according to criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, text revision. Eating disorders were the most prevalent psychiatric condition (thirty-six subjects, 17·4 %), followed by mood and anxiety disorders (9·7 % and 8·7 %, respectively). The frequency of psychiatric disorders among different BMI categories was as follows: 75·0 % in underweight, 50·0 % in normal weight, 33·3 % in overweight and 33·3 % in obese subjects.

CONCLUSIONS

Psychiatric disorders may be frequently found in subjects wishing to lose weight. Our results highlight the importance of psychiatric assessment especially in underweight and normal-weight subjects.

Dismorfia muscular: análise comparativa entre um critério antropométrico e um instrumento psicológico

Os transtornos psiquiátricos relacionados à distorção da auto-imagem corporal são marcados por elevado grau de sofrimento físico e psíquico, associado a perdas sociais e ocupacionais significativas, além de produzirem comportamentos danosos para a saúde física do paciente. A dismorfia muscular (DISMUS) é um subtipo do transtorno dismórfico corporal, que se caracteriza por uma preocupação específica com o tamanho do corpo e com o desenvolvimento dos músculos. É um transtorno presente quase exclusivamente em homens que, apesar da visível hipertrofia, procuram ativamente aumentar sua massa muscular, através de exercícios excessivos, do uso de substâncias ergogênicas e de dietas hiperprotéicas. O presente estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a validade de constructo de um critério antropométrico (Índice B/P - relação entre a perimetria do braço contraído e da perna), anteriormente proposto, para suspeita diagnóstica de DISMUS. Uma amostra (n = 100) de homens, praticantes de treinamento de força, com idade entre 18 e 35 anos, teve suas medidas antropométricas comparadas os os escores obtidos em uma escala usada para o diagnóstico da DISMUS (MASS - Muscle Appearance Satisfaction Scale) e também com as medidas de um grupo de indívíduos de características semelhantes, avaliados com o objetivo de obter orientação para a prática de exercícios físicos (n = 313). A análise dos resultados indica que um indivíduo com índice B/P > 1 possuem alta probabilidade de apresentar um escore indicativo de DISMUS no instrumento MASS e sugere ser coerente a aplicação do índice B/P como um indicador antropométrico válido para o diagnóstico de DISMUS. O critério B/P pode ser um potente instrumento usado por profissionais da área de exercício para auxiliar no diagnóstico e tratamento precoce desses indivíduos.