Body image and body mass index of indigenous women from Hidalgo state, Mexico

The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between the body mass index (BMI) and the body image of indigenous women from Hidalgo, Mexico. Body dissatisfaction/satisfaction was evaluated in 167 adult women ( M age  = 34.45, SD  = 6.76) based on BMI and on the partial markup technique of image. The 83% of women assessed had some degree of body dissatisfaction specially related to the desire of thinness (51%) than with the desire of being robust (32%). Normal weight (21%) and low weight (20%) women were those who were more satisfied with their body image; on the contrary, women with obesity (57%) were the less satisfied. However a significant association among BMI and body satisfaction/dissatisfaction was not identified. One of the main contributions of this study was to analyze the correspondence between two little studied variables in indigenous adult women: BMI and body image. These findings strength the need to keep studying this kind of population as well as the development of preventive and promoting health programs aimed to indigenous groups.