Body image preference among Nigerians with type 2 diabetes

Abstract

AbstractSelf‐estimates of body mass and preferred body figure for individuals with type 2 diabetes and/or hypertension and preferences of body figure for the opposite gender were measured in order to determine how Nigerians with either or both conditions perceive their body sizes and that of the opposite gender.Adults with type 2 diabetes and/or hypertension attending a diabetes clinic, who volunteered to take part in the study, were requested to select body sizes from a standard figure rating scale (of 1–9 with 9 being the largest) to represent their current body figure perception (CBFP) and their preferred body figure (PBF) for themselves and the opposite gender. Selected anthropometric and demographic data were also collected.A total of 139 (84 females) subjects aged 55.71±12.95 years, BMI (kg/m2) of 27.0±5.8 and CBFP of 5.14±1.42 were involved. A highly significant correlation between BMI and CBFP (r = 0.69, p<0.001) was observed. CBFP was highly predictive of actual body size (BMI) with both parameters related as CBFP = 0.59±0.17 BMI (0.02), R2 = 0.47. Strikingly, 68.3% (95) of the subjects selected a body figure with visible fat for their current self, i.e. scale 5 and above. Also, 67.2% of the males and 61.9% of females preferred the opposite gender to have body silhouettes with visible fat. PBF was not too dissimilar from CBFP selected by most subjects, but more (p<0.01) females than males were significantly dissatisfied with their existing body shape.In conclusion, the results suggest that the study population was overweight and preferred to remain so or only slightly less overweight. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons.