Women's Health Issues
Volume 17, Issue 6 , Pages 374-382 , November 2007

Beyond adolescence: Exploring Canadian Women and Men’s Perception of Overweight

  • Enza Gucciardi, MHSc, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Ryerson University, School of Nutrition, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • University Health Network Women’s Health Program, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • Enza Gucciardi, PhD, is an Assistant Professor at Ryerson University and a Scientific Associate with the University Health Network, Women’s Health Program. She is a researcher in women’s health, and the delivery of and access to chronic disease self-management education.
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorrespondence to: Enza Gucciardi, MHSc, PhD, School of Nutrition, Ryerson University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5B 2K3.
    • ,
  • Shirley C. Wang, BSc

      Affiliations

    • University Health Network Women’s Health Program, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • University of Toronto, Faculty of Arts and Science, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • Shirley Chi-Tyan Wong, BSc, is a first-year student at Ross University School of Medicine.
    • ,
  • Tina Badiani, MHSc

      Affiliations

    • University of Toronto, Department of Public Health Sciences, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • Tina Badiani, MHSc, is an epidemiologist working with the Infectious Diseases Surveillance Section at the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.
    • ,
  • Donna E. Stewart, MD, FRCP

      Affiliations

    • University Health Network Women’s Health Program, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • University of Toronto, Faculty of Psychiatry, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • Donna E. Stewart, MD, FRCPC, is a University Professor and Chair of Women’s Health at University Health Network and University of Toronto where she is appointed to Psychiatry, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medicine, Surgery, Anesthesis and Family and Community Medicine. She is a researcher in women’s health, mental health and international health.

Received 7 February 2007 ,Accepted 29 May 2007.

References 

  1. Allaz AF, Bernstein M, Rouget P, Archinard M, Morabia A. Body weight preoccupation in middle-age and ageing women: a general population survey. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 1998;23:287–294
  2. Andres R. Mortality and obesity: The rationale for age specific height-weight tables. In:  Andres R,  Bierman EL,  Hazzard W editor. Principles of geriatric medicine. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1985;p. 311–318
  3. Bellisle F, Monneuse MO, Steptoe A, Wardle J. Weight concerns and eating patterns: A survey of university students in Europe. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders. 1995;19:723–730
  4. Bergstrom E, Stenlund H, Svedjehall B. Assessment of body perception among Swedish adolescents and young adults. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2000;26:70–75
  5. Brewis AA, McGarvey ST, Jones J, Swinburn BA. Perceptions of body size in Pacific Islanders. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders. 1998;22:185–189
  6. Brodie DA, Slade PD, Riley VJ. Sex differences in body-image perceptions. Perceptual and Motor Skills. 1991;72:73–74
  7. Caccamese SM, Kolodner K, Wright SM. Comparing patient and physician perception of weight status with body mass index. American Journal of Medicine. 2002;112:662–666
  8. Cairney J, Wade TJ. Correlates of body weight in the 1994 National Population Health Survey. International Journal of Obesity. 1998;22:584–591
  9. Chandra RK, Imbach A, Moore C, Skelton D, Woolcott D. Nutrition of the elderly. Canadian Medical Association Journal. 1991;145:1475–1487
  10. Crago M, Shisslak CM, Estes LS. Eating disturbances among American minority groups: A review. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 1996;19:239–248
  11. Craig CL. Nutrition. In:  Stephens T,  Fowler GD editor. Canada’s health promotion survey 1990: Technical report. Ottawa: Ministry of Supply and Services Canada; 1993;p. 125–137
  12. Crawford D, Campbell K. Lay definitions of ideal weight and overweight. International Journal of Obesity. 1999;23:738–745
  13. Cuadrado C, Carbajal A, Moreiras O. Body perceptions and slimming attitudes reported by Spanish adolescents. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2000;54:S65–S68
  14. Cullari S, Rohrer JM, Bahm C. Body-image perceptions across sex and age groups. Perceptual and Motor Skills. 1998;87:839–847
  15. Davis H, Gergen PJ. Self-described weight status of Mexican-American adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health. 1994;15:407–409
  16. Donath SM. Who’s overweight? (Comparison of the medical definition and community views). Medical Journal of Australia. 2000;172:375–377
  17. Fairburn CG, Beglin SJ. Studies of the epidemiology of bulimia nervosa. American Journal of Psychiatry. 1990;147:401–408
  18. Farre RR, Frasquet PI, Martinez Martinez MI, Roma SR. Self-reported versus measured height, weight and body mass index in Spanish Mediterranean teenagers: Effects of gender, age and weight on perceptual measures of body image. Annals of Nutrition & Metabolism. 2002;46:68–72
  19. Federal Provincial and Territorial Advisory Committee on Population Health. Toward a Health Future: Second report on the Health of Canadians Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada. Ottawa, Canada: Publications, Health Canada; 1999;
  20. Feldman W, McGrath P, O’Shaughnessy M. Adolescents’ pursuit of thinness. American Journal of Diseases of Children. 1986;140:294
  21. Flegal KM, Carroll MD, Ogden CL, Johnson CL. Prevalence and trends in obesity among US adults, 1999–2000. Journal of the American Medical Association. 2002;288:1723–1727
  22. Gardner RM, Friedman BN, Jackson NA. Body size estimations, body dissatisfaction, and idea size preferences in children six through thirteen. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. 1999;28:603–618
  23. Gariballa S. Nutrition and older people: special considerations relating to nutrition and ageing. Clinical Medicine. 2004;4:411–414
  24. Gittelsohn J, Harris SB, Thorne-Lyman AL, Hanley AJ, Barnie A, Zinman B. Body image concepts differ by age and sex in an Ojibway-Cree community in Canada. Journal of Nutrition. 1996;126:2990–3000
  25. Canadian Heart Health Surveys Research GroupGreen KL, Cameron R, Polivy J, Cooper K, Liu L, Leiter L, et al. Weight dissatisfaction and weight loss attempts among Canadian adults. Canadian Medical Association Journal. 1997;157(1):S17–S25
  26. Gutierrez-Fisac JL, Lopez GE, Rodriguez-Artalejo F, Banegas B, Guallar-Castillon P. Self-perception of being overweight in Spanish adults. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2002;56:866–872
  27. Harris MB, Furukawa C. Attitudes toward obesity in an elderly sample. Journal of Obesity and Weight Regulation. 1986;5:5–16
  28. Health and Welfare Canada. Canadian guidelines for healthy weights: Report of an export group convened by the health promotion directorate. Ottawa: Minister of Supply and Services; 1989;
  29. Heights R, Pritchard M, King S, Czajka-Narins D. Adolescent body mass indices and self-perception. Adolescence. 1997;32:863–880
  30. Hetherington MM, Burnett L. Ageing and the pursuit of slimness: Dietary restraint and weight satisfaction in elderly women. British Journal of Clinical Psychology. 1994;33:391–400
  31. Hill A, Roberts J. Body mass index: A comparison between self-reported and measured height and weight. Journal of Public Health Medicine. 1998;20:210
  32. Hoskins ML, Dellebuur K. Consuming identities: young women, eating disorders and the media. Vancouver: BC Centre for Excellence for Women’s Health; 2000;
  33. Hsu LK, Zimmer B. Eating disorders in old age. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 1988;7:133–138
  34. Hyman I, Dussault G. Negative consequences of acculturation on health behaviour, social support and stress among pregnant Southeast Asian immigrant women in Montreal: An exploratory study. Canadian Journal of Public Health. 2000;91:357–360
  35. Jones JM, Bennett S, Olmsted MP, Lawson ML, Rodin G. Disordered eating attitudes and behaviours in teenaged girls: A school-based study. Canadian Medical Association Journal. 2001;165:547–552
  36. Kart CS, Metress ES, Metress JF. Ageing and health: Biological and social perspectives. Menlo Park, CA: Addison-Wesley Publishing; 1978;
  37. Kenney RA. Physiology of aging. Chicago: Year Book Medical; 1982;
  38. Keys A, Fidanza F, Karvonen MJ, Kimura N, Taylor HL. Indices of relative weight and obesity. Journal of Chronic Diseases. 1972;25:343
  39. Kjaerbye-Thygesen A, Munk C, Ottesen B, Kruger KS. Why do slim women consider themselves too heavy? (A characterization of adult women considering their body weight as too heavy). International Journal of Eating Disorders. 2004;35:275–285
  40. Kuskowska WA, Nergstrom R, Bostrom G. Relationship between questionnaire data and medical records of height, weight and body mass index. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders. 1992;16:9
  41. Leonhard ML, Barry NJ. Body image and obesity: effects of gender and weight on perceptual measures of body image. Addictive Behavior. 1998;23:31–34
  42. Lesourd BM. Nutrition and immunity in the elderly: modification of immune responses with nutritional treatments. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1997;66:478S–484S
  43. Libow SL, Sherman FT. The core of geriatric medicine. St. Louis: The C.V. Mosby; 1981;
  44. Lucas AR, Beard CM, O’Fallon WM, Kurland LT. 50-year trends in the incidence of anorexia nervosa in Rochester, Minn.: a population-based study. American Journal of Psychiatry. 1991;148:917–922
  45. MacIntosh C, Morley JE, Chapman IM. The anorexia of aging. Nutrition. 2000;16:983–995
  46. Madrigal H, Sanchez-Villegas A, Martinez-Gonzalez MA, Kearney J, Gibney MJ, Irala J, et al. Underestimation of body mass index through perceived body image as compared to self-reported body mass index in the European Union. Public Health. 2000;114:468–473
  47. Mattila K, Haavisto M, Rajala S. Body mass index and mortality in the elderly. British Medical Journal (Clinical Research Edition). 1986;292:867–868
  48. McCreary DR, Sadava SW. Television viewing and self-perceived health, weight, and physical fitness: Evidence for the cultivation hypothesis. Journal of Applied Social Psychology. 1999;29:2342–2361
  49. McCreary DR, Sadava SW. Gender differences in relationships among perceived attractiveness, life satisfaction, and health in adults as a function of body mass index and perceived weight. Psychology of Men and Masculinity. 2001;2:108–116
  50. McLaren L, Hardy R, Kuh D. Women’s body satisfaction at midlife and lifetime body size: a prospective study. Health Psychology. 2003;22:370–377
  51. McLaren L, Kuh D. Body dissatisfaction in midlife women. Journal of Women and Aging. 2004;16:35–54
  52. McVey G. Eating disorders. In:  Rapp-Paglicci L,  Dulmus C,  Wodarski J editor. Handbook of preventive interventions for children and adolescents. New York: Wiley & Sons; 2004;p. 275–300
  53. Morley JE. Anorexia of aging: physiologic and pathologic. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1997;66:760–773
  54. O’Dea J. The new self-esteem approach for the prevention of body image and eating problems in children and adolescents. Healthy Weight Journal. 2002;16:89–93
  55. O’Dea JA, Caputi P. Association between socioeconomic status, weight, age and gender, and the body image and weight control practices of 6- to 19-year-old children and adolescents. Health Education and Research. 2001;16:521–532
  56. Paeratakul S, White MA, Williamson DA, Ryan DH, Bray GA. Sex, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and BMI in relation to self-perception of overweight. Obesity Research. 2002;10:345–350
  57. Pan AS. Body image, eating attitudes, and eating behaviors among Chinese, Chinese-American and non-Hispanic White women. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: the Sciences & Engineering. 2000;61
  58. Pate JE. Cross-cultural patterns in eating disorders: A review. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 1992;31:802–809
  59. Pesa JA, Syre TR, Jones E. Psychosocial differences associated with body weight among female adolescents: The importance of body image. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2000;26:330–337
  60. Pingitore R, Spring B, Garflied D. Gender differences in body satisfaction. Obesity Research. 2000;5:402–409
  61. Pritchard M, King SL, Czajka-Narins DM. Adolescent body mass indices and self-perception. Adolescence. 1997;32:863–880
  62. Rodriguez A, Novalbos JP, Martinez JM, Ruiz MA, Fernandez JR, Jimenez D. Eating disorders and altered eating behaviors in adolescents of normal weight in a Spanish city. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2001;28:338–345
  63. Rolland K, Farnill D, Griffiths RA. Children’s perceptions of their current and ideal body sizes and body mass index. Perceptual and Motor Skills. 1996;82:651–656
  64. Rust KF, Rao JNK. Variance estimation for complex surveys using replication techniques. Statistical Methods in Medical Research. 1996;5:238–310
  65. Sanchez-Villegas A, Madrigal H, Martinez-Gonzalez MA, Kearney J, Gibney MJ, de Irala J, et al. Perception of body image as indicator of weight status in the European union. Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 2001;14:93–102
  66. Sciacca JP, Melby CL, Hyner GC, Brown AC, Femea PL. Body mass index and perceived weight status in young adults. Journal of Community Health. 1991;16:159–168
  67. Spiegelman D, Israel RG, Bouchard C, Willet WC. Absolute fat mass, percent body fat, and body-fat distribution: Which is the real determinant of blood pressure and serum glucose. American Journal of Clinical of Nutrition. 1992;55:1033–1044
  68. Statistics Canada. Canadian Community Health Survey (Statistics Canada). 2004;Available: www.statcan.ca/english/concepts/health/. Accessed December 18, 2003
  69. Stewart AW, Jackson RT, Ford MA, Beaglehole FT. Underestimation of relative weight by use of self-reported height and weight. American Journal of Epidemiology. 1987;125:122–126
  70. Strauss RS. Self-reported weight status and dieting in a cross-sectional sample of young adolescents: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III. Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine. 1999;153:741–747
  71. Striegel-Moore RH, Silberstein LR, Rodin J. Toward an understanding of risk factors for bulimia. The American Psychologist. 1986;41:246–263
  72. Stunkard AJ, Albaum JM. The accuracy of self-reported weights. American Journal of Clinical of Nutrition. 1981;34:1593–1599
  73. Tayback M, Kumanyika S, Chee E. Body weight as a risk factor in the elderly. Archives of Internal Medicine. 1990;150:1065–1072
  74. Tienboon P, Rutishauser IH, Wahlqvist ML. Adolescents’ perception of body weight and parents’ weight for height status. Journal of Adolescent Health. 1994;15:263–268
  75. Troy LM, Hunter DJ, Manson JE, Colditz GA, Stampfer MJ, Willet WC. The validity of recalled weight among younger women. International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders. 1995;19:570–572
  76. Turner SL, Hamilton H, Jacobs M, Angood LM, Dwyer DH. The influence of fashion magazines on the body image satisfaction of college women: An exploratory analysis. Adolescence. 1997;32:603–614
  77. Walters S. Sex differences in weight perception and nutritional behaviour in adults with cystic fibrosis. Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. 2001;14:83–91
  78. Williamson DF. Descriptive epidemiology of body weight and weight change in U.S. adults. Annals of Internal Medicine. 1993;119:646–649
  79. Williamson S, Delin C. Young children’s figural selections: Accuracy of reporting and body size dissatisfaction. International Journal of Eating Disorders. 2001;29:80–84
  80. Ziebland S, Thorogood M, Fuller A, Muir J. Desire for the body normal: Body image and discrepancies between self reported and measured height and weight in a British population. Journal of Epidemiol and Community Health. 1996;50:105–106
  81. Zimmermann MB, Hess SY, Hurrell RF. 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. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2000;54:568–572

PII: S1049-3867(07)00105-3

doi: 10.1016/j.whi.2007.05.007

Women's Health Issues
Volume 17, Issue 6 , Pages 374-382 , November 2007

Article Tools