PERCEPTION OF BODY IMAGE IN STUDeNTS OF A PRIVATE MEDICAL COLLEGE IN A CITY OF THE STATE OF SÃO PAULO.

Abstract

Purpose: Analyze the perception of body image in students of a private medical college in a city of the state of Sao Paulo, characterizing the participants in gender, age and BMI. Methods: It was a cross-sectional study composed of a sample of 109 students. The analysis of the perception of the body image was realized from the Scale of Figures of Silhouettes, instrument developed for a Brazilian population by Kakeshita et al. (2009). Parcial results: Of the 109 students evaluated, 74 were women and 35 men, aged 18-35 years. Body perceptions and satisfaction were assessed by comparisons between the BMI Real (calculated on the basis of the data collected by weight and height) and the BMIs corresponding to the chosen silhouettes as the one the participants thought they had (BMI Current) and the one they wanted to have (BMI Wanted). Only the female participants presented significant values (p 0.05). Conclusion: The non-accuracy and dissatisfaction of body image in the students are in agreement with the prevalence found in researches with university students, it may be significantly associated with greater risks of development of eating disorders.