Abstract
BackgroundObesity is rapidly globally increasing. Meanwhile, there is an increase in negative perception of the body image and, consequently, an increase in weight control management. Body perception plays an important mediating role between overweight or obesity and weight control behaviours. This study aims to examine whether body perception is associated with dietary weight management behaviours among Chinese children and adolescents.MethodsChild body perception and health behaviours from Chinese Health and Nutrition Survey (2015) were assessed, and 729 boys and 640 girls who aged 6 to 17 years were included in this study. Variables assessed as covariates were sociodemographic, physical activity and body perception involving self-perceptive weight status and body image dissatisfaction (BID). Multivariate logistic regression was used to explore the association between dietary weight management behaviours and body perception.Results60.77% students rightly matched their body mass index (BMI) with self-perceived weight. The prevalence of BID was 59.39%. After adjustment for sociodemographic information, physical activities and BMI, those whose self-perceived weight status as overweight/obesity were associated with an increased risk of dietary weight management behaviours comparing to those who have normal weight in boys (OR = 5.07; 95% CI = 1.86, 13.87; P < 0.001) and girls (OR = 14.28; 95%CI = 5.73, 35.56; P < 0.001). And those who desire to be thinner were strongly associated with dietary weight management behaviours (OR = 9.51; 95%CI = 3.47, 26.09; P < 0.001) comparing to those who were satisfied with their body image in girls.ConclusionsThe results revealed that body perception had a significant association with dietary weight management behaviours and exited the discrepancy according to sex. It is necessary to promote healthy awareness of body perception and to establish self-motivation for improving basic health knowledge in school health education activities.
Highlights
Incorrect recognition of body weight status or body dissatisfaction image is a threat to weight control as it may be associated with unhealthy behaviours and psychosocial morbidities [11]
Boys accounted for 53.25% and girls accounted for 46.75% among the participants
After adjusting for age (Model 1), overweight/obesity of self-perceptive weight status were significantly associated with a higher risk to take behaviours for managing their weight compared with self-perceptive weight status as normal in boys [Odds ratio (OR) (95%Confidence interval (CI)) = 7.86(3.90, 15.87)] and girls [OR (95%CI) = 13.18(6.58, 26.41)]
Summary
Body perception plays an important mediating role between overweight or obesity and weight control behaviours. From 1975 to 2016, the worldwide prevalence of obesity or overweight children and adolescents aged 5–19 years were reportedly rapidly increased more than four-fold from 4 to 18% globally [2]. Body perception plays an important mediating role between overweight or obesity and weight control behaviours and has been frequently reported in recent years in different population, in female and in psychosocial domains [4,5,6]. Previous studies have shown that body dissatisfaction, or the negative subjective evaluations/experiences of one’s physical appearance, including body size and shape [8], may increase the risk of unhealthy behaviours such as eating disorder or depression [9, 10]. Body perception could be a helpful tool for health care providers when a body weight management program was planned
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