Gender and Age Differences in the Relationship Between Body Mass Index and Perceived Weight: Exploring the Paradox

Body Image and Physical Activity and the Diet of Polish Youth Aged 15-18

Adolescence is a crucial stage in the biological, psychological, and social development of humans. During this period, perceptions of one's body and behaviors are formed. The aim of the study was to investigate body image (BI) and its relationship with physical activity and selected eating habits in adolescents. The study included 312 people (102 girls (32.69%) and 210 boys (67.31%)) aged 15-18. As many as 40% of the girls and 27% of the boys reported feeling dissatisfied with their body mass. BI was negatively perceived by the adolescents, with girls being more critical than boys. Lack of acceptance of one's body mass negatively affects overall BI in girls, and only the functional aspects in boys. Negative perception of body mass in girls does not motivate them to increase physical activity but rather causes them to adopt dietary restrictions.

Nutritional status and body image perception in a group of moroccan adolescents

BACKGROUND: Adolescent obesity has become a pressing public health issue in Morocco. Along with the increased prevalence of obesity, body weight misperceptions have also increased among adolescents, which may reduce the effectiveness of intervention programs. The main study objective was to establish the relationship between body image perception, anthropometric status and their associated factors among a sample of Moroccan adolescents. METHODS: A cross-sectional school-based survey was conducted during 2018, involving 250 adolescents from Morocco. Data on sociodemographic information, anthropometric characteristics, and weight perception were collected and reported as the means and proportions. Statistical analysis was carried out using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 19.0 software. RESULTS: The prevalence of overweight and obesity in our study reached 12.8% and 4.8%, respectively. Misperception of body weight compared to body mass index (BMI) was found in 50.4% of young adolescents (χ2 = 54.05; p <  0.001), and dissatisfaction computed by the Feel minus Ideal Discrepancy (FID) index reached 46% with no difference between the sexes (χ2 = 2.55; p >  0.05). The Feel weight status minus Actual weight status Inconsistency (FAI) index was used to determine whether the subjects’ perception of their weight was realistic. The results showed that both sexes tended to underestimate their weight. Only 68.2% of overweight/obese participants reported trying to lose weight (χ2 = 39.74; p <  0.001), while this number increased to 94.7% when the intention to lose weight was related to perceived body image (χ2 = 86.09; p <  0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study reveal that a mismatch exists between the perception of body weight and actual BMI in adolescents, with a tendency toward underestimation, affirming the early effect of social norms and the vulnerability to sociocultural influences of individuals in this age category. Future interventions and educational programs are thus required to prevent overweight and obesity and to address the mismatch between adolescents’ weight status and their perceived weight.

Young People's Experiences of Engaging With Fitspiration on Instagram: Gendered Perspective

Background

Fitness inspiration or fitspiration is a term used to describe web-based images of fit people, people in the gym, health foods, or inspirational quotes relating to diet and fitness being shared and consumed via visual social media. The popularity of this content is most notable via the Instagram platform. Currently, the majority of fitspiration research has focused on women’s experiences; however, increasingly, studies have pointed to the need to explore the gendered ways by which people engage with this content.

Objective

The aim of this study is to explore how young men and women engage in fitspiration content on Instagram and provide a gendered analysis of how and why they consume this content.

Methods

This study used a cross-sectional web-based survey (N=1213) of UK-based fitspiration users aged 18-24 years consisting of closed-ended questions to capture quantitative data.

Results

The majority actively using Instagram for fitspiration (therefore eligible participants) were women (826/1175, 70.30%). Men were more likely to view content posted by athletes (χ²_{1, N=1153}=71.8; P=.001) and bodybuilders (χ²_{1, N=1153}=32.8; P<.001), whereas women were more likely to view content related to weight loss (χ²_{1, N=1153}=36.8; P<.001), diet plans (χ²_{1, N=1153}=11.9; P<.001), and celebrities’ content (χ²_{1, N=1153}=33.5; P<.001). Men were more likely to use fitspiration as a source of inspiration to exercise to gain muscle or get stronger (χ²_{1, N=1147}=17.9; P<.001), whereas women were more likely to use fitspiration as inspiration for healthy eating (χ²_{1, N=1147}=37.7; P<.001), or to exercise to diet or lose weight (χ²_{1, N=1147}=13.5; P<.001). Women were more likely to engage in passive behaviors such as viewing content on their feed (χ²_{1, N=1139}=7.9; P=.005) or scrolling through accounts (χ²_{1, N=1139}=15.2; P<.001), whereas men were more likely to engage in active consumption by tagging fitspiration accounts in posts (χ²_{1, N=1139}=7.2; P=.007), commenting on posts (χ²_{1, N=1139}=8.1; P=.004), and posting fitspiration content (χ²_{1, N=1139}=6.4; P=.01).

Conclusions

Female fitspiration consumers engaged with content that reinforced the feminine thin but shapely ideal, whereas male users sought out content that reinforced the masculine muscular ideal. Male users were more likely to engage actively with content (eg, posting fitspiration content), while female users were more likely to engage passively (eg, scrolling through accounts, posts, or images). Future research should consider how fitspiration consumption reflects and reproduces oppressive gender ideology.

Body mass index, subjective body shape, and suicidal ideation among community-dwelling Korean adults

Background

Previous studies have not investigated in depth the combination of objective body weight and subjective body shape and its association with suicidal ideation among different age groups. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the abovementioned association among Korean adults, stratified by developmental stages.

Methods

We used nationally representative data from the 2017 Korean Community Health Survey, and included 222,037 participants aged 19 years or older in our study. Suicidal ideation was considered as the dependent variable (1 = yes, 0 = no). Along with body mass index (BMI) and subjective body shape measures, seven categories were created (1 = underweight-skinny, 2 = underweight-normal/fat, 3 = healthy weight-skinny, 4 = healthy weight-normal, 5 = healthy weight-fat, 6 = overweight-skinny/normal, 7 = overweight-fat). Multivariate logistic regression was conducted for each age group.

Results

Adjusted for covariates, young adults who were overweight-fat (OR = 1.18, p < .01), middle-aged adults who were underweight-skinny (OR = 1.32, p < .05), and older adults who were healthy weight-fat (OR = 1.19, p < .05) were more likely to have suicidal ideation than their healthy weight-normal counterparts.

Conclusions

The results suggest that the association between the combination of objective body weight and subjective body shape and suicidal ideation differs according to the developmental stage. Therefore, this difference should be considered when developing suicide prevention interventions based on the developmental stages.

Canadian men's health stigma, masculine role norms and lifestyle behaviors

Men are at high risk for both morbidity and premature mortality from several of the most common serious diseases. Although numerous factors have been identified to explain men's risk, this study focused on the relationship between lifestyle behaviors, health-related self-stigma and masculine role norms. An age and location stratified sample of 2000 Canadian men completed measures assessing five lifestyle behaviors (smoking, alcohol use, sleep, diet and exercise), a screen for depression, and measures of self-stigma and masculine role norms. The results showed that elements of both health-related self-stigma and masculine role norms were associated with increased risk for being above the clinical threshold for four of the lifestyle behaviors and depression. The most frequent and largest relationships were associated with exercise and depression. The total number of lifestyle behaviors for which participants were above the clinical cut-points was also associated with self-stigma and masculine role norms. These findings demonstrate the importance of health-related self-stigma and masculine role norms as potential barriers to men's health and well-being.

Gender and Physical Activity: Are they Associated with Body Mass Index in Elderly Jordanian People?

Background: The number of elderly people is increasing worldwide, and elevated body mass index is a common problem that occur with elderly people, which can be directly or indirectly affected by level of physical activity and gender. So, it is essential to study the effect of both physical activity and gender on body mass index in elderly people.

Material and methods: A cross-sectional, observational study was conducted on 120 elderly Jordanian people who live in Amman (62 women; 58 men) and evaluated for body mass index. Those participants were 40 elderly persons who attended the gym at least twice a week for the last 2 years, and 80 elderly who were home resident or physically inactive. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data about personal, social, health and life-style information including the daily activities and the anthropometric measurements for the study participants.

Results: The results of this study showed that as elderly people become physically inactive, their body mass index will increase to become as overweight or obese. The results of this study also showed that body mass index of 30 and more was associated with gender, with majority of female elderly (50%) having body mass index of 30 or more.

Conclusion: Physical activity should be maintained by both genders in order to prevent obesity, primarily in women as they are more likely to become obese that men. Furthermore, body mass index should not exceed 30 in elderly. Physical activity is essential in order to obtain healthy weight.

"Do I look fat?" Self-perceived body weight and labor market outcomes

Research reporting that greater body weight is associated with lower wages and employment, particularly among women, focuses on how employers perceive workers. In contrast, we examine whether workers' own perceptions of body weight influence labor market outcomes. Numerous studies find that misperception of body weight influences health behaviors and health, both mental and physical. For example, anorexia nervosa involves the over-perception of weight and raises the risk of cardiovascular disease. Do the health consequences of inaccurate self-perceived weight carry through to the labor market? We use the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) to investigate patterns in weight misperception and three labor market outcomes. We find little evidence that either over-perception or under-perception of weight is associated with wages, weeks worked, or the number of jobs held for women and men.

"Skinny is prettier and normal: I want to be normal"-Perceived body image of non-Western ethnic minority children in the Netherlands

While the prevalence of overweight and obesity is higher among children of some non-Western ethnic minorities than among their Caucasian counterparts, their body image is understudied. The current study examined the body image of Dutch children of non-Western ethnic minorities (i.e., Surinamese, Antillean, Moroccan, and Turkish). Sociocultural influences from school, media and home environments and their perceptions of overweight prevention programs were taken into account. Fifty-two non-Western ethnic minority children (aged 8-12 years) participated in semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Results showed that the children generally underestimated their current body size, which was often overweight, and preferred thin and 'normal' body sizes. Results further revealed important insights into culturally determined themes, relating to perceived preferences in media, peers, parents, and teachers, nutritional habits, and children's beliefs about school-based health interventions. We conclude that targeting culturally sensitive awareness about actual body size and healthy body images seems paramount in future interventions.

Male Body Practices

The pressure on boys and men to engage in extensive body practices (e.g., closely monitored eating and exercise habits) and achieve ideal male bodies has grown significantly over the past 20 years. Central to the depiction of ideal male bodies and body practices are both the pursuit and achievement of lean and well-defined muscles. The labels “pitches,” “purchases,” and “performativities” were inductively derived from the literature, and used to describe the multifaceted connections between masculinities, muscularity, and idealized male body practices. “Pitches” distil how popular culture posture norms of masculinity, and manly bodies and behaviors attainable and necessary. “Purchases” refer to men’s diverse buy-in to dominant discourses about acceptable male bodies and practices. “Performativities” chronicle how men embody and navigate gender norms as they evaluate their own bodies, behaviors, and eating habits and those of their peers. Based on findings from the current scoping review, future research could benefit from fully linking masculinities with the drive for muscularity to address health and social risks associated with the pursuit of the idealized male body. In highlighting the plurality of masculinities and the complexity of men’s diverse identities, health care providers can better reach and support men. Focusing on, and celebrating, a wider range of male bodies could help recenter dominant discourses about how and whose bodies and experiences are idealized. The current scoping review article offers an overview of how masculinities and muscularity have been linked to male body practices, and recommendations to advance this emergent field.

Bayesian network modeling: A case study of an epidemiologic system analysis of cardiovascular risk

An extensive, in-depth study of cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF) seems to be of crucial importance in the research of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in order to prevent (or reduce) the chance of developing or dying from CVD. The main focus of data analysis is on the use of models able to discover and understand the relationships between different CVRF. In this paper a report on applying Bayesian network (BN) modeling to discover the relationships among thirteen relevant epidemiological features of heart age domain in order to analyze cardiovascular lost years (CVLY), cardiovascular risk score (CVRS), and metabolic syndrome (MetS) is presented. Furthermore, the induced BN was used to make inference taking into account three reasoning patterns: causal reasoning, evidential reasoning, and intercausal reasoning. Application of BN tools has led to discovery of several direct and indirect relationships between different CVRF. The BN analysis showed several interesting results, among them: CVLY was highly influenced by smoking being the group of men the one with highest risk in CVLY; MetS was highly influence by physical activity (PA) being again the group of men the one with highest risk in MetS, and smoking did not show any influence. BNs produce an intuitive, transparent, graphical representation of the relationships between different CVRF. The ability of BNs to predict new scenarios when hypothetical information is introduced makes BN modeling an Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool of special interest in epidemiological studies. As CVD is multifactorial the use of BNs seems to be an adequate modeling tool.

The Curse of Curves: Sex Differences in the Associations Between Body Shape and Pain Expression

This study examines the associations between objective and subjective measurements and impressions of body shape and cold pressor pain reporting in healthy adults. On the basis of sexual selection theory (SST), we hypothesized that body characteristics that are universally preferred by the opposite sex-specifically, lower waist-to-hip ratios (WHR) in women and higher shoulder-to-hip ratios (SHR) in men-and characteristics (e.g., proportion of body fat in women) that infer attractiveness differently across cultures will correspond to higher experimental pain reporting in women and lower pain reporting in males. A convenience sample of young adults (n = 96, 58 females, 18-24 years; mean age = 19.4) was measured for body mass index (BMI), WHR, SHR, and subjective body impressions (SBI), along with cold pressor pain reporting. The findings showed that BMI was positively associated with WHR and less-positive SBI in both sexes. Consistent with SST, however, only BMI and WHR predicted variability in pain expression in women, whereas only SHR predicted variability in men. Subjective body impressions were positively associated with SHR among males and unrelated to WHR among females, yet only females showed a positive association between SBI and higher pain reporting. The findings suggest that sexually selected physical characteristics (WHR and SHR) and culturally influenced somatic (BMI) and psychological (SBI) indicators of attractiveness correspond with variability in pain reporting, potentially reflecting the general tendency for people to express clusters of sexually selected and culturally influenced traits that may include differential pain perception.

A longitudinal investigation of overweight children's body perception and satisfaction during a weight management program

BACKGROUND

The Children's Body Image Scale (CBIS) is a measure of body perception and satisfaction. Obesity has a negative impact on children's body satisfaction. This study aimed to (1) determine the construct validity of the CBIS in a purely overweight/obese sample, and (2) explore longitudinal changes in body perception and satisfaction in overweight/obese children participating in a six month weight management program delivered to parents. Data were self-reported by overweight/obese 5 to 9 year old children (n = 127) over a 36 month period.

FINDINGS

The CBIS demonstrated good construct validity (Rho: range 0.38 to 0.71, p < 0.05). Accuracy in body size perception did not alter significantly over time (Rho: range 0.45 to 0.59, p < 0.001). No consistent differences in body satisfaction by age or sex were observed. Body satisfaction improved after the six month weight management intervention (mean difference = 0.74, 95% CI 0.15-1.26) which was maintained at 36 month follow up.

CONCLUSION

The CBIS is a useful measure to monitor overweight/obese children's body satisfaction. In this cohort, it is suggestive that the child weight management program delivered to parents did not impact negatively on children's body satisfaction.

Differences in body esteem by weight status, gender, and physical activity among young elementary school-aged children

Body satisfaction is important for the prevention of disordered eating and body image disturbances. Yet, little is known about body esteem and what influences it among younger children. The purpose of this study was to evaluate body esteem and the relationships between body esteem, weight, gender, and physical activity in elementary school children. A total of 214 third graders in a U.S. Midwestern state participated in this correlational study. The Body Mass Index-for-age, the Body Esteem Scale (BES), BE-Weight, BE-Appearance, and a Physical Activity Checklist were used to examine the relationships between the variables using bivariate correlations and analysis of variance. While children's body esteem did not differ by physical activity, important interactions were identified between weight status and gender in global body esteem and BE-Appearance. It is critical to examine attitudes about weight and appearance and the relationship between body esteem and self-esteem further among middle childhood-aged children.

Predicting ideal body mass index: what does clothing size have to do with it?

This study examined demographic and anthropometric variables as predictors of ideal body mass index (BMI) from cross-sectional, archival, self-reported data from the Psychology of Size Survey of 4014 U.S. residents collected in 2007. As hypothesized, ideal BMI can be predicted by a within gender hierarchical multiple regression analysis with the predictor variables of age, number of clothing sizes from ideal size, and current BMI; these variables account for 54.1% of variance in women's ideal BMI and 65.5% of variance in men's ideal BMI. Findings also demonstrated a logarithmic relationship between current BMI and ideal BMI, with increasing variance in ideal BMI for individuals with high current BMIs. These findings evidence the strong role of current body characteristics in the formation of ideals. Understanding how individuals conceptualize body ideals can inform researchers and practitioners alike, as this evidence has important implications related to both medical and psychological health.

Weight ratings of others: The effects of multiple target and rater features

The present study investigated factors that affect the subjective analysis of the weight of other individuals. Three hundred and thirty-three participants viewed figures varying in muscularity, adiposity, gender, and race. For each of the eighteen figures (targets), a 2 (rater gender: male, female)x3 (rater race/ethnicity: Caucasian, African American, Hispanic)x3 (target race/ethnicity: Caucasian, African American, Hispanic) repeated measures ANCOVA was conducted (BMI was covaried). Overall, there were few significant effects, however, for some of the figural stimuli, African American raters assigned lower weight ratings than did Caucasian and Hispanic raters. The findings offer support for further investigation of ethnic differences in weight ratings as a potential factor that might inform ethnic differences in overweight and obesity prevalence.

A longitudinal investigation of the Drive for Muscularity Scale: predicting use of performance enhancing substances and weightlifting among males

The present study was designed to examine the predictive validity of the Drive for Muscularity Scale (DMS; McCreary & Sasse, 2000). The drive for muscularity scale (DMS) is comprised of two subscales: a muscularity-oriented body image (MBI) subscale and a muscularity behavior (MB) subscale. The present study tested whether these subscales predicted two behavioral outcomes in the context of a longitudinal design: use of performance enhancing substances (PES) and weightlifting behavior. One hundred and sixty-one male undergraduates completed a questionnaire that assessed the drive for muscularity, PES use and weightlifting behavior at Time 1 and again 6 weeks later. Results indicated that the MB subscale at Time 1 significantly predicted both changes in PES use and weightlifting behavior controlling for past substance use and past weightlifting behavior. The MBI subscale failed to predict either changes in PES use or weightlifting behavior. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

The impact of recalled elementary school height and weight on later weight concerns

Although overweight children and adolescents experience a number of immediate difficulties, little research has investigated the long-term psychological consequences for individuals who were overweight as children or adolescents despite their weight status as young adults. The goal of this study was to examine the relations between individuals' retrospective reports of their weight and height during elementary and high school, and their past and current weight concerns. It was expected that individuals who recall being overweight as a child or adolescent would have more weight concerns than their peers who recall being normal weight, even after controlling for current body size. Participants were 174 females and 61 males, ranging in age from 18-20 (M=18.66 yr, SD=0.63). For females, perceived elementary school weight in comparison to their peers significantly predicted current weight concerns, p<0.05. For males, perceived elementary school height in comparison to their peers significantly predicted a history of weight concerns, p<0.05. Retrospective height and weight in high school did not impact current weight concerns for either males or females.

A conceptual model of factors contributing to the development of muscle dysmorphia

Muscle dysmorphia is a recently described subcategory of Body Dysmorphic Disorder. It is most prevalent in males and has a number of cognitive, behavioral, socioenviornmental, emotional, and psychological factors that influence its expression. An etiological model describing these influences is presented for evaluation. Nine variables (body mass, media influences, ideal body internalization, low self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, health locus of control, negative affect, perfectionism, and body distortion) were identified through the use of extant literature on muscle dysmorphia and through extrapolation from literature involving women and eating disorders. The functional relationships among these variables are described and implications of the model are discussed.

Secular trends in desired weight of adults

CONTEXT

The prevalence of overweight and obese adults in the United States is at record levels.

OBJECTIVE

The primary purpose is to describe secular trends in desired weight among adults from 1994 to 2003, and secondarily, to examine the hypothetical impact of achieving desired weight on obesity prevalence.

DESIGN

Data were from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2003), a random-digit-dialed telephone survey.

SETTING

Sample included respondents from 47 states and the District of Columbia.

PARTICIPANTS

Non-institutionalized adults aged 18 years or older were included (N=703 286).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Primary outcome measures included reported weight and desired weight.

RESULTS

Means for desired weight increased 2.3 kg between 1994 and 2003, and reported weights increased 3.9 kg. The increased trend was observed across several subgroups for age, race/ethnicity and education. Within subgroups of weight status, the trend has remained relatively stable, particularly when examined in relation to the difference between reported and desired weight as a percentage of reported body weight. Generally, overweight men desired weights approximately 4.5% less than their reported weight, and obese men desired weights approximately 15% less than their reported weight for each corresponding year. For women, approximate values of desired weight were 12% less than reported weight for overweight women and 24% less for obese women. The prevalence of obesity would decrease to 4.4% if individuals weighed their desired weight.

CONCLUSIONS

Americans are shifting their desired weight upward, concomitantly with an increase in their reported body weight.

Body image in children and adolescents: where do we go from here?

During the past two decades, there has been an explosion of research concerning body image in children and adolescence. This research has been fueled both by concern about the effects of poor body image in children and adolescents themselves and by the assumption that body dissatisfaction during childhood and adolescence creates risk for the development of body image and eating disturbances as well as depression in adulthood. The extant research, however, has remained largely descriptive and is marked by methodological problems. The purpose of the present paper is to identify substantial gaps in the literature concerning body image in children and adolescents. The focus is on four major issues: (1) measurement, (2) epidemiological data, (3) developmental trends, and (4) the meaning of gender. Addressing these and related questions will aid in the development of treatment and prevention programs.