Thin Girls Research Articles

The prevalence of anaemia in rural adolescent girls - A cross-sectional study to understand the sociodemographic and dietary determinants in Dharwad District, India.

Anaemia is one leading cause of morbidity among adolescent girls. Prevention, early detection, and treatment can break the intergeneration cycle of malnutrition. The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of anaemia and assess its sociodemographic determinants and understand its association with the dietary pattern of rural adolescent girls. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 350 adolescent girls studying in the school of Kalgatigi Taluk, Dharwad district. The school girls were interviewed using a predesigned structured questionnaire by interview method. A food frequency questionnaire was used to assess the dietary pattern. Haemoglobin levels were estimated using Sahli's method. Data were entered in Microsoft Excel and analysed using SPSS version 19 and the Chi-square test was applied to study the significance. Rural adolescent school girls between the age group of 13-16 years were included. The prevalence of anaemia among them was found to be 47.4% and was significantly associated with the educational status of the mother, their socioeconomic status (SES), and type of diet. Vegetarian girls had a higher prevalence of anaemia. The frequency of meat and egg consumption was significantly associated with anaemia. The prevalence of anaemia was higher in thin and severely thin girls based on WHO-BMI. Anaemia in rural adolescent girls is of high burden and public health importance with a prevalence of 47.4% and significant association with dietary habits, SES, and BMI.

Correlation between body mass index and haemoglobin level of adolescent girls in a stunting locus area at Tangerang, Indonesia

Introduction: In Indonesia, anaemia is known to be extremely common in female adolescents. In addition, the problem of overweight/obesity in teenagers is becoming more prevalent, even in stunting locus areas. This study aimed to examine the correlation between body mass index (BMI) and haemoglobin levels among adolescent girls in Tangerang’s stunting locus area. Methods: This crosssectional study included 171 adolescent girls attending four junior and senior high schools in Tangerang’s stunting locus area. Adolescents who matched the inclusion criteria— healthy, having lived in Sukamantri for more than six months, and willing to participate were chosen by a multistage cluster sampling procedure. Body weight and fat were measured, and Z-score for BMI-for-age was determined. Haemoglobin levels were measured by the Mission Hb Testing System. Multiple linear regression test was applied for the analysis. Results: The prevalences of thinness/severe thinness, normal, and overweight/obesity were 5.3%, 70.8%, and 23.9%, respectively. There were 20% of anaemic girls. Among anaemic girls, there were 26% overweight/obese and no thin/very thin girls. A weak, negative correlation between BMI with haemoglobin levels was observed (R2=0.054, p<0.001). Conclusion: The correlation between BMI and haemoglobin level was weak in our sample of adolescent girls in the stunting locus area. The current study emphasised the importance of additional research that includes several haematological and inflammatory biomarkers to better understand the complex relationship between nutritional status and haemoglobin level.

Body mass index and implications for pediatric kidney health: a cross-sectional study with urinary biomarkers.

Extremes of unhealthy body weight, particularly obesity, are known to increase the risk of chronic kidney diseases. However, the current knowledge of kidney health outcomes associated with unhealthy body weight remains incomprehensive, especially in pediatrics. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate body mass index (BMI) and its potential associations with kidney health in a selected subset of school students in Sri Lanka. This cross-sectional study was conducted among students of both sexes in the range of 11-18years of age (N = 1078) in education zones with no reported cases of chronic kidney disease of uncertain etiology. Based on sex- and age-specific BMI percentiles (LMS method), the participants were classified into five BMI groups (severely thin, thin, healthy, overweight, and obese) for measurement of urinary biomarkers of kidney injury: kidney injury molecule (KIM-1), neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), and albumin creatinine ratio (ACR). The median urinary levels ofNGAL, ACR, and particularly KIM-1, which is a more sensitive indicator of kidney injury, showed no significant differences across the BMI strata. Importantly, moderate correlations of BMI with KIM-1 and NGAL were identified in severely thin girls. According to the present study, these findings do not produce plausibly strong evidence to establish a potential association of BMI with altered kidney function in the studied pediatric communities. Particularly, a likelihood of abnormal kidney health outcomes associated with undernutrition is apparent in severely thin girls. However, in-depth studies are warranted to develop a comprehensive understanding of the associations of nutritional status with pediatric kidney health in Sri Lanka. A higher resolution version of the Graphical abstract is available as Supplementary information.

Multisectoral Nutrition Interventions and Their Impact on BMI and Thinness Levels Among Adolescent Girls: An Open Experiment in Two Remote Blocks of Karnataka, India

The Karnataka Multisectoral Nutrition Pilot Project (2015–2018) was implemented in Devadurga Block, Raichur District and Chincholi Block, Gulbarga District—two most backward Blocks in Karnataka. Special interventions for behaviour change and appropriate dietary supplementation for adolescent girls (11–18 years) were implemented through an inter-sectoral, intergenerational strategy. This article analyses real time data regarding thinness/severe thinness among 8,847 adolescent girls in the cross-sectional group and 1,545 adolescent girls in the cohort group. Both BMI-cut-offs method and BMI-for-age Z-score methods provide strong evidence of significant increase in percentage of ‘normal’ adolescent girls from baseline to endline; significant decrease in severe thinness; non-significant decrease/increase in moderate thinness. Data also indicates that while 68.2% of baseline moderately thin girls transitioned to normal category, 71.8% new moderately thin girls (44.3% from improved severely thin girls and 27.5% from normal girls), transitioned into the moderately thin category. Data provides strong evidence that thinness/severe thinness among adolescent girls reduced significantly through project interventions, which are simple to replicate. Tallest girls at baseline, and those gaining fastest height, transitioned to becoming/remaining moderately/severely thin, an area for further research. Further research is required regarding the ideal duration of interventions to improve moderate underweight/thinness to normal status.

Impact of social network use on anorexia and bulimia in female adolescents: a systematic review

Systematic review of published studies on the impact of social networks (SN) use on anorexia and bulimia in female adolescents. We selected articles published over the past 10 years, written in English, Spanish or Portu-guese found in The Cochrane Library Plus, PubMed, WOS, PsycINFO, and Scopus databases and with enough methodological quality. Nine studies were included in this review with a sample of 2,069 adolescents; 75.3% were female, mean age was 18 years, and mostly used Facebook and Instagram. Despite some positive aspects, SNs promote beauty standards in terms of thinness, allow comparisons between peers increasing concerns about weight, and create spaces that encourage anorexia and bulimia. Therefore, SN use plays a role in the development of eating disorders. The promotion of extreme thinness in girls makes this population more vulnerable.

The association between overweight and obesity on bone mineral density in 12 to 15 years old adolescents in China.

Overweight/obesity can influence bone mineral accretion, but the conclusions are not consistent. We aimed to examine the association between bone mineral density (BMD) levels and body mass index (BMI) in 12 to 15 years old adolescents.We performed a cross-sectional study including 8365 adolescents. BMD was evaluated using a quantitative ultrasound device. Z scores for BMI were evaluated using World Health Organization references. Logistic regression models were performed to evaluate the association between BMD levels and BMI.Totally 1866 (22.3%) adolescents had low /reduced BMD, and boys had a higher rate than girls (72.6% vs 27.4%, P < .001). The rates of thinness, normal weight, overweight, and obesity were 2.8%, 57.1%, 22.3%, and 17.8%, respectively. The multivariable-adjusted (age, sex, systolic blood pressure, and height Z score) ORs (95% CIs) of low/reduced BMD associated with BMI groups (thinness, normal [reference], overweight, and obesity) were 0.59 (0.39–0.89), 1.00, 1.61 (1.41–1.84), and 1.98 (1.69–2.30), respectively (Ptrend < .001). This positive association existed in boys and girls though the differences were not significant between normal weight and thin girls. The multivariable-adjusted ORs for each 1-unit increase in BMI Z score were 1.36 (1.24–1.49) for girls, and 1.23 (1.16–1.30) for boys, and 1.26 (1.20–1.32) for all participants.We observed a positive association between BMI and low/reduced BMD in 12 to 15 years old adolescents. More attention should be paid on overweight and obese adolescents to reduce the risk of low BMD. Further studies are needed to explore the mechanisms of this association.

Generalized joint hypermobility, scoliosis, patellofemoral pain, and physical abilities in young dancers

BackgroundMany young girls with generalized joint hypermobility (GJH) choose to participate in dance because their bodies are suited for this activity. Scoliosis tends to occur often in thin girls, who also are more likely to choose dance. Both anomalies (GJH and scoliosis) may be related to reduced abilities such as diminished strength and insufficient postural balance, with increased risk for musculoskeletal conditions. The main objectives of the present study were to determine the prevalence of dancers with GJH, the prevalence of dancers with scoliosis, and the prevalence of dancers with these two anomalies; and, to determine differences in physical abilities and the presence of patellofemoral pain (PFP) between young female dancers with and without such anomalies.MethodsOne hundred thirty-two female dancers, aged 12–14 years, were assessed for anthropometric parameters, GJH, scoliosis, knee muscle strength, postural balance, proprioception ability, and PFP.ResultsGJH was identified in 54 dancers (40.9%) and scoliosis in 38 dancers (28.8%). Significant differences were found in the proportion of dancers with no anomalies (74 dancers, 56.1%) and dancers with both anomalies (34 dancers, 25.8%) (p < .001). Dancers with both anomalies had reduced dynamic postural balance in the anterior direction (p = .023), reduced proprioception ability (p < .001), and weaker knee extensors (p = .036) and flexors (p = .040) compared with dancers with no anomalies. Among dancers with both anomalies, 73.5% suffered bilateral PFP, 17.6% suffered unilateral PFP, and 8.8% had no PFP (p < .001).ConclusionsA high prevalence of young girls participating in dance classes had GJH, as the increased joint flexibility probably provides them with some esthetic advantages. The high prevalence of scoliosis found in these young dancers might be attributed to their relatively low body mass, their delayed maturation, and the selection process of dancers. Dancers with both GJH and scoliosis had decreased muscle strength, reduced postural balance, reduced proprioception, with higher risk of PFP. The main clinical implications are the need to reduce the risk of PFP among dancers by developing appropriate strength and stabilizing exercises combined with proprioceptive and postural balance training, to improve the correct alignment of the hyperextended and hypermobile joints, and to improve their supporting muscle strength.

Body and dieting concerns of pre-adolescent South African girl children

There has been an increase in research that focuses on female adolescents and adult women concerns relating to body image and dieting concerns. However, research on body and dieting concerns of specifically pre-adolescents is still a neglected area of research in comparison with female adolescents and adult women. Pre-adolescents are either research participants as part of a group, which includes younger children, or part of a group of adolescents. This article addresses the body and dieting concerns of pre-adolescent females as a group on their own. A qualitative study was conducted, and data were collected by using a vignette with semi-structured questions. The data were analysed by using a thematic analysis. The results indicated that although the girls presented a ‘polite’ discourse that all girls should be accepted irrespective of weight, when they were futher engaged with during the interviews this was not reflective of their world view. Negative attributes were projected onto the heavier girl in the vignette, and the discourse of acceptance was linked to feelings of pity and sympathy as fat girls were ‘handicapped’ albeit not because of their own doing. Thin girls were linked to positive traits, such as kind, happy and with leadership potential. The pre-teens in the sample were all very familiar with terms related to food restrictions (dieting), and a number of them had indulged in dieting behaviour to lose weight. The research was conducted in one province in South Africa and provides baseline data for a bigger study, which includes other provinces, as well as girls from rural areas and girls from schools in poorer urban areas. The results indicated that the pre-teen girls have internalised gendered notions of what it means to be female and being thin is integrally linked to what patriarchy has constructed as the ideal female body.Contribution: This article is grounded within the discipline of Psychology. However, the scholarly contribution it intersects with include the disciplines of Public Health, Education and Gender Studies. It provides and engages a discourse at the intersections of the Social Sciences and Humanities disciplines, contributing to knowledge which is interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary.

The relationship between body shape perception and health behaviors among Korean normal-weight adolescents using Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-Based Survey.

Inappropriate adolescent health behavior can be influenced by the negative impact of physical and mental health promotion. Obesity influences subjective improper weight perception. This study aimed to verify Korean normal-weight adolescents’ subjective experience of weight control, mental health, physical activity, and subjective status based on their body mass index (BMI). As a result, efforts to control weight appeared less in normal-weight boys. Thin girls were less likely to carry out 60 min of physical activity 7 or 5 days per a week. Obese boys were less likely to carry out vigorous physical activity 3 days per a week. Normal-weight girls were less likely to practice muscular strength training 3 days per a week. Thin boys and thing girls were less likely to practice regular physical activity, and less likely to practice at the rate stipulated in the sedentary behavior guideline. In conclusion, boys and girls with inappropriate weight perception reported feeling stressed and depressed, and reported subjective sleep fulfillment, perceived subjective happiness, and perceived subjective health.

The Cabin, and: Impression, Sunrise, and: Wedding Night

The Cabin, and: Impression, Sunrise, and: Wedding Night Allison Donohue (bio) The Cabin Everyone knows the shape of a ghost. There,after turning a corner, the way the hallwayfalls away and she stands like a ray or a beamof Spring, shining. That ghosts are far fromfrightening. But more like gazing through a windowat the splintered cold. I saw onejust the other day across the lawn. She led me,with the curtsy of her hips, the gentle waterfallof her waist, back to that Spring,arriving there with him. Where every morning he and I came alive in speckled light and movedlike slow, spring water through the rocks towardsomething like an ocean or a river. And after,in the musty screened-in porch, we readentangled in our heavy thoughts. Then theghost became me as I watched him in thekitchen between the steam, in the evening,cooking sausages over polenta cakes, spinachwith thin slices of jamón. He poured me wineand handed me his fork. How can they sayghosts are mere fabrications when I can feel him stillholding my arms, the thin girl I'd been when,after leaving the cabin, he kissed me on my parents' lawn? [End Page 136] Impression, Sunrise after the painting by Claude Monet A glum, thunderous summer wakes,overcast and hanging. She dreams againof the white-walled room waiting for itstapestry of paint. Of hours spent with him.August shivers through the window;the smell of salt-blocked fish, thesound of frigates lowing out to sea,their horns, like hearts, moaning. Then quietas a paintbrush she considers the unlocked, propped suitcasein her room of nothing more than a bed, a chair,a wisp of frayed curtain circling the hotair. Down the hall, lace silhouettes falllike dune birds on prey, their beaks andwings pointed. The sun, sad andtroublesome,hovers up. And that is all thereis to love. The sea tuckedbeneatha coat of wind, the sand bristling like thespiked shoulders of a Dungeness crab. Shecupsa dish of fog and begins to drawthe conch quiet, the sea raw; the achethe frigates drag in their slow, impossible wake.She withdraws to dip her brush into the shadow,to place the couple rowing forwardon the edge of their rocking reflection. Theyfish the sun up out of the ocean, so roundwith summer it warms her canvasand her thin strokes in the sunrise-dim dream,the couple not so separate as they seemed to him. [End Page 137] Wedding Night You told me, that night, you like imagining as you sleepthat your whole body lies like a long, stretched constellationin the belly of a lake. There was a smallceiling of clouds beginning to pillow and deepen with sound,rumbling like the music of fastmachinesacross high, arched bridges (dependingon the wind, the weather). I told you: as a girl, when I couldn't sleep, I used to walk a long, deserted beach listeningto the dramatic sea. Being alone—and beyond my control—the sea wouldsing, and sing, mourning the lossand gain of land. I would bend to hold her in my cupped hands. And now, sometimes when I'm sleepless (but never, now, alone) I watch your long, lean bodybeneath the song of a smallcontinuing. Your oared arms resting heavy, heavy; your slim backcurved like the edge of an empty, rockinghull. It is late, dark. And full ofdreams you breathe, delicately rowingtoward deep, untold imaginings. [End Page 138] Allison Donohue Allison Donohue holds degrees from Virginia Tech, Texas Tech University, and the University of Oregon. Her poems have appeared in Ninth Letter, Crab Orchard Review, Hotel Amerika, and elsewhere. Copyright © 2018 University of Nebraska Press

A study on prevalence of anaemia and various factors influencing anaemia among adolescent girls in urban and rural field practice areas of Osmania Medical College

Background: Adolescents in India represent over 1/5th (22.3%) of total population. Iron deficiency anaemia is the commonest medical disorder and is a problem of serious public health condition with epidemic proportions. It has significant impact on physical, psychological development, immunity, behaviour, and work performance. The objectives of the study were to determine prevalence of anaemia among adolescent girls and to study the various factors associated with anaemia in urban and rural field practice areas of Osmania Medical CollegeMethods: A total of 760 adolescent girls (380 in each area) were interviewed and examined. BMI was calculated with anthropometric calculator available in WHO anthroplus. Method of haemoglobin estimation is by cyneamethe-heamoglobin. Anaemia was classified based on WHO classification. Results: The prevalence of anaemia was 74.5% and 82.6% in rural and urban area respectively. In rural area, 84 (87.5%) of girls were anaemic who were menstruating more than 7 days and only 31 (45.6%) were anaemic who were menstruating less than 3 days. Majority of married subjects were anaemic in both urban (82.4%) and rural (95.8%) area. Religion did not have significant relation with anaemia. Prevalence of anaemia was more in lower and lower middle class. In the present study majority of thin girls were anaemic in both rural (97.4%) and urban (94.8%) area with significant statistical association. In present study those who were taking meat more than once a week had less percentage of anaemia 38 (36.9). Those respondents who never took green leafy vegetables have more prevalence of anaemia in both areas. All were statistically associated. Conclusions: Anaemia which is a very serious problem in adolescent girls requires urgent action and practicable interventions

The relationship between selected socioeconomic factors and thinness among Polish school-aged children and adolescents

The analysis was performed on a database including 17,427 records of subjects aged 7–18 years, randomly sampled from a population of Polish students. Thinness was determined using international cut-off points, defined to pass through body mass index of 18.5 kg/m2 at the age of 18. The weighted prevalence of thinness and odds ratios with 95% confidence interval were estimated for gender, birth weight, level of schooling and school location, gross domestic product (GDP) per inhabitant, family income and maternal education. Body height was analysed according to body mass and birth weight categories. The prevalence of thinness was higher among children with low birth weight and among girls. The prevalence of thinness decreased with increasing GDP per inhabitant. In analysis by level of schooling: primary-middle-secondary, prevalence of thinness decreased among boys and increased among girls. Thin students were significantly shorter than other students, and thin girls less likely participated in physical education.Conclusion: Gender and socioeconomic factors are important determinants of thinness among Polish children and adolescents. Public health strategies should address family eating practices to prevent negative effects of weight deficit, especially among girls/children from low GDP regions.What is Known:• Socioeconomic factors and gender influence weight status of children and adolescents.What is New:• The first time the prevalence and determinants of thinness based on data from a nationally representative, weighted sample of Polish children aged 7–18 years were presented.• The analysis shows how gender and socioeconomics determinants influence the prevalence of thinness among children and adolescent in post-transformation country and can be used to international comparisons.

Physiological changes of adipokines during the menstrual cycle

Background. The cyclical effects of hormones during the menstrual cycle (MC) are responsible for driving ovulation. The information about roles of adipokines within the scope of MC are not definite. Leptin plays a role in sexual function and regulating the onset of puberty. Thin girls often fail to ovulate or release an egg from an ovary during menstruation cycles. Leptin also acts on specific receptors in the hypothalamus to inhibit appetite. Levels of leptin are increased in women suffering from premenstrual syndrome.Aim. The aim of our study was to describe physiological changes of selected steroids and adipokines at healthy women during the MC.Methods. Twenty-seven women with regular menstrual cycles were included in the study. Each sample was collected in cooled EDTA tubes, centrifuged at 2000 rpm in a refrigerated centrifuge, and stored at –80 °C. For all samples we measured luteinizing hormone (LH), follicularstimulating hormone (FSH), sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), estradiol, 7α-DHEA, 7β-DHEA, 7-oxoDHEA, 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17-OH P), progesterone, cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) by RIA and IRMA. Levels in plasma of hormones associated with food intake (c-peptide, ghreline, GIP, GLP, GLP-1, glucagon, insulin, leptin, PAI-1, resistin and visfatin) were measured using magnetic bead-based multiple assays (x-MAP technology, Luminex Corporation). Two kits were used: the 10-plex Bio-Plex Pro Human Diabetes assay and the 2-plex Bio-Plex Pro Human Adiponectin and Adipsin assay (both Bio-Rad Laboratories).Patient. Twenty-seven women with regular menstrual cycles (cycle length 28±2 days) were included in the study. The average age of the women was 31.8±3.56, and average BMI 22.9±2.8. The women used no hormonal contraceptives or other medicines influencing the production of steroid hormones, and were non-smokers. Before enrollment in the study, all signed informed consent that was approved by the local ethical committee of the Institute of Endocrinology.Intervention. Fasting blood samples were taken in the morning between 7 and 8 am. The first sampling was done at the start of the menstrual cycle (1st or 2nd day). Subsequent samples were taken at regular intervals every three days, for a total of 10 samples taken during the study.Main outcome measures. During the MC we found increased levels of testosterone, estradiol, progesterone, and 17-hydroxyprogesterone during ovulation. SHBG gradually increased after ovulation. There was a significant decrease in resistin levels during ovulation, followed by an increase in the latter part of the cycle. Adipsin showed a notable increase during ovulation, but this increase was not statistically significant.Results. Classical changes in gonadotropins, estrogens and progesterone during the menstrual cycle are accompanied by less striking but significant changes in 17-hydroxyprogesterone and testosterone. No significant changes show dehydroepiandrosterone and its 7-oxygenated metabolites. Adipokines show a tendency to increase during ovulation, while ghrelin and resistin decrease. There is also a remarkable association of sex hormone binging globuline (SHBG) on the day of the cycle.Conclusions. Our results demonstrate that changes to adipokines during the menstrual cycle are not substantial. Differing leptin levels are characteristic for premenstrual syndrome. Precise descriptions of physiological changes in healthy women are important in helping us understand the significance of the changes accompanying various pathological states.

Secular Trend in Thinness Prevalence for 26 Years (1989 - 2014) among High School Runners in Japan.

BackgroundFemale distance runners are predisposed to thinness for performance reasons and at greater risk for health-related consequences than the general population.ObjectivesThe aim of the study was to evaluate the secular trends in thinness among competitive distance runners in Japanese high schools with sex-specific comparison.MethodsBody mass index (BMI) were analysed in 9,881 female and 12,786 male runners participating in the annual national road relay races between 1989 and 2014 using the directory of a track and field magazine. The age-specific trends of these variables and the prevalence of thinness were tested by linear and logistic regression, respectively.ResultsAlthough BMI declined significantly among both male and female runners (coefficients: boys, -0.033, -0.030, and -0.032; girls, -0.033, -0.034, and -0.034 [all P < 0.001] in 15.5-, 16.5-, and 17.5-year-olds, respectively), the prevalence of severely thin runners significantly increased only among girls (odds ratios for the yearly change = 1.05 and 1.06 [both P < 0.01] for 16.5- and 17.5-year-olds, respectively). Only 0.13% of male runners were regarded as severely thin throughout the study period.ConclusionsThe results suggested that severely thin girl runners has steadily increased. Surveys on the health consequences of extreme thinness are necessary for the female adolescent runners.

The Effect of resistance training circuit with Medicago sativa extracts on levels of Osteoprotegerin and Nuclear Factor of Kappa-B in thin girls

The Effect of resistance training circuit with Medicago sativa extracts on levels of Osteoprotegerin and Nuclear Factor of Kappa-B in thin girls

Risks and Threats of Social Media Websites: Twitter and the Proana Movement.

In recent years, there was a spread of "proanorexia" Web sites. The aim of our study is to investigate the presence, popularity, and content of the "proana" accounts on Twitter. On January 2015, we used "Twitter Search" to retrieve the "proana" accounts. For each account, we analyzed the number of followers, tweets, and the biographical information of the users. We followed these accounts for 4 weeks, assessing the variations in followers and tweets. We also investigated the most used hashtags and the main contents of these profiles. We retrieved 341 accounts. These accounts were popular (mean followers: 2360.9, range: 5-32,700) and active (mean tweets: 4351.2, range: 5-85,700). The users were mostly girls (97.9 percent), in general teenagers (mean age: 17.9 years, range: 12-28). Only around six percent of the accounts presented a warning text about the dangerous content. Each week, we found a mean increase in both followers and tweets. The five most used hashtags resulted in descending order as follows: "thinspo," "thinspiration," "Thin15," "EDprobs," and "proana." The most commonly used contents were in the following order: autobiographic, "thinspiration" photos (inspirational photos of extremely thin girls), "thinspiration" quotes (motivational mottos), "ana tips" (advices for weight loss), and "fasting competition." We underlined a concerning high number and popularity of Twitter proanorexia groups. These accounts contain dangerous information, especially considering the young age of the users. Given the lack of warnings in almost all the accounts, a first step to control this phenomenon could be the increase of such written alerts.

Two Poems

58 WLT NOVEMBER–DECEMBER 2016 A Swap At the market bus stop I’m waiting with a man in ragged clothes, unshaven, his hair greasy, swinging his hand holding a big plastic bag with “The Big Shopper” written on it. Why did I smile, why did I bite my lip? The corners of my canvas shopping bag heavy with fruit and vegetables are nearly touching the ground. “Shall we swap bags?” He deliberates, scratches himself behind the ear, mumbling something incomprehensible. His bus arrives. He suddenly grabs my bag, leaving his own on the ground for me. Here’s my bus now. I try to lift the bag, but suddenly it’s too heavy, beyond measure. This is how heavy Saint Philothea was when as a thin girl she died for Christ and nobody could lift her off the ground. I strain hard to lift it but haven’t the strength. I open it and in it – a sparrow with eyes rolled back cooped up at the bottom as if in a vault. Why is it that everything that has been and has passed is heavy only in death which “The Big Shopper” can’t pay off? And all that will be and will pass is heavy only in the life of the one who will return my bag to God. Without Me Like the automatic door on a train my life closed. Strangers remained on the platform, but they each knew who they were waving to. In the carriages – suitcases, hubbub, passengers with their feet on the seats. And one booked seat, by the window, which everyone was eyeing from the corridor. In the distance an old woman in black running for the train. She fell exhausted on the grass and the train left without her. I pulled the red emergency brake. The conductor crashed into me. I pushed the door open and jumped out. The train whistled, a shadow loomed through the windows. The old woman in black was nowhere to be seen. And my life left without me. Translations from the Macedonian By Ljubica Arsovska & Patricia Marsh Editorial note: From ЦРНО НА БЕЛО (In black and white) (Skopje; Ili-Ili, 2016) Ljubica Arsovska is editor in chief of the long-established Skopje cultural magazine Kulturen Život and a distinguished literary translator from English into Macedonian and vice versa. Her published translations include more than twenty books and plays as well as poems and collected poems by Macedonian poets published in Macedonia and abroad. Patricia Marsh is a writer of fiction and nonfiction, author of The Scribe of the Soul and The Enigma of the Margate Shell Grotto, and translator of a number of plays and poems from Macedonian into English. She lectured in English at the University of Skopje for a long period before returning to live and work in the UK in 1992. Two Poems by Lidija Dimkovska poetry ...

Two Poems

58 WLT NOVEMBER–DECEMBER 2016 A Swap At the market bus stop I’m waiting with a man in ragged clothes, unshaven, his hair greasy, swinging his hand holding a big plastic bag with “The Big Shopper” written on it. Why did I smile, why did I bite my lip? The corners of my canvas shopping bag heavy with fruit and vegetables are nearly touching the ground. “Shall we swap bags?” He deliberates, scratches himself behind the ear, mumbling something incomprehensible. His bus arrives. He suddenly grabs my bag, leaving his own on the ground for me. Here’s my bus now. I try to lift the bag, but suddenly it’s too heavy, beyond measure. This is how heavy Saint Philothea was when as a thin girl she died for Christ and nobody could lift her off the ground. I strain hard to lift it but haven’t the strength. I open it and in it – a sparrow with eyes rolled back cooped up at the bottom as if in a vault. Why is it that everything that has been and has passed is heavy only in death which “The Big Shopper” can’t pay off? And all that will be and will pass is heavy only in the life of the one who will return my bag to God. Without Me Like the automatic door on a train my life closed. Strangers remained on the platform, but they each knew who they were waving to. In the carriages – suitcases, hubbub, passengers with their feet on the seats. And one booked seat, by the window, which everyone was eyeing from the corridor. In the distance an old woman in black running for the train. She fell exhausted on the grass and the train left without her. I pulled the red emergency brake. The conductor crashed into me. I pushed the door open and jumped out. The train whistled, a shadow loomed through the windows. The old woman in black was nowhere to be seen. And my life left without me. Translations from the Macedonian By Ljubica Arsovska & Patricia Marsh Editorial note: From ЦРНО НА БЕЛО (In black and white) (Skopje; Ili-Ili, 2016) Ljubica Arsovska is editor in chief of the long-established Skopje cultural magazine Kulturen Život and a distinguished literary translator from English into Macedonian and vice versa. Her published translations include more than twenty books and plays as well as poems and collected poems by Macedonian poets published in Macedonia and abroad. Patricia Marsh is a writer of fiction and nonfiction, author of The Scribe of the Soul and The Enigma of the Margate Shell Grotto, and translator of a number of plays and poems from Macedonian into English. She lectured in English at the University of Skopje for a long period before returning to live and work in the UK in 1992. Two Poems by Lidija Dimkovska poetry ...

Maternal body image dissatisfaction and BMI change in school-age children.

Parental body image dissatisfaction (BID) is associated with children's weight in cross-sectional studies; however, it is unknown whether BID predicts development of adiposity. The objective of the present study was to investigate the associations between maternal dissatisfaction with her or her child's body and children's BMI trajectories. Longitudinal study. Maternal dissatisfaction (BID) with her and her child's body was calculated based on ratings of Stunkard scales obtained at recruitment, as current minus desired body image. Children's height and weight were measured at baseline and annually for a median of 2·5 years. Mixed-effects models with restricted cubic splines were used to construct sex- and weight-specific BMI-for-age curves according to maternal BID levels. Public primary schools in Bogotá, Colombia. Children (n 1523) aged 5-12 years and their mothers. After multivariable adjustment, heavy boys and thin girls whose mothers desired a thinner child gained an estimated 1·7 kg/m2 more BMI (P=0·04) and 2·4 kg/m2 less BMI (P=0·004), respectively, between the age 6 and 14 years, than children of mothers without BID. Normal-weight boys whose mothers desired a thinner child's body gained an estimated 1·8 kg/m2 less BMI than normal-weight boys of mothers without BID (P=0·02). Maternal BID with herself was positively related to children's BMI gain during follow-up. Maternal BID is associated with child's BMI trajectories in a sex- and weight-specific manner.

Stable prevalence of obesity in Swedish schoolchildren from 2008 to 2013 but widening socio-economic gap in girls.

The aim of this study was to follow the 5-year prevalence of overweight, obesity and thinness in 7- to 9-year-old children in West Sweden and to investigate whether trends differed according to gender and socio-economic status. Cross-sectional anthropometric measurements of three cohorts in grades one and two were performed in 3492 7- to 9-year-old children in 2008, 2010 and 2013. For body mass index classification, the IOTF/Cole and WHO 2007 references were used. Percentage of inhabitants with high education in the school area was used for socio-economic classification. Between 2008, 2010 and 2013, the overall time-trends in overweight 17.7%, 19.3% and 18.8%, obesity 3.2%, 3.3% and 3.1%, and thinness 6.5%, 4.7% and 6.9%, respectively, were fairly stable using the IOTF/Cole references. Thinness defined by the Cole reference increased in girls. The socio-economic gradient for overweight and obesity was clear by both references, but using the IOTF reference, the gap increased for obesity among girls (p = 0.024). No significant trends were observed with the WHO reference. The overall prevalence of overweight and obesity was stable over 5 years, but we detected growing inequality in obesity and increasing prevalence of thinness in girls. With these regionally representative data, we can draw conclusions about West Sweden, despite an absence of continued national surveillance.