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Body‐weight perception and related preoccupations in a large national sample of adolescents
Author(s) -
Deschamps V.,
Salanave B.,
ChanChee C.,
Vernay M.,
Castetbon K.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
pediatric obesity
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.226
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 2047-6310
pISSN - 2047-6302
DOI - 10.1111/j.2047-6310.2013.00211.x
Subject(s) - underweight , dieting , overweight , medicine , observational study , body weight , normal weight , demography , weight control , cross sectional study , body mass index , weight loss , pediatrics , obesity , pathology , sociology
Summary Objectives This study aimed to investigate the association between body‐weight ( BW ) perception, weight preoccupation and behaviour, including weight control practices and compulsive over‐eating episodes, across gender and actual BW classes. Design This study used a cross‐sectional observational study. Participants A large, nationally representative sample of 6404 ninth‐grade F rench adolescents was randomly selected from schools throughout F rance. Methods Weight and height were measured, and BW preoccupation, BW control practices and compulsive over‐eating were self‐reported using standardized questionnaires. Results Nearly one‐third of adolescents misperceived their BW . Misperception was more frequent among girls than boys (42.2% vs. 27.3%, P < 0.01). Underestimation of BW among overweight adolescents, like BW overestimation among underweight adolescents, was associated with less preoccupation with weight and fewer weight control practices than accurate perception of BW . Normal weight adolescents who overestimated their BW were more likely to declare weight preoccupations ( OR a = 8.66 [6.67–11.25]), dieting ( OR a = 4.81 [3.68–6.27]) and recurrent compulsive over‐eating episodes ( OR a = 2.36 [1.72–3.23]) compared with their counterparts who correctly estimated their BW . Conclusion Our study underlines the role of these associations in each category of actual BW (underweight, normal weight and overweight) in a large national sample.