The cultural pressures on women to be thin and diet have been linked to the expression of serious eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa. The current study attempts to document and quantify the shift toward a thinner ideal shape for females in our culture over the last 20 years. Data from Playboy centerfolds and Miss America Pageant contestants indicated a significant trend toward a thinner standard. Over the same period there was a significant increase in diet articles in six popular women's magazines. These changes occurred within the context of increasing population weight norms for young women. Biosocial implications including the apparent recent increase in anorexia nervosa are discussed.

Objective

Nearly two-thirds of a group of preschool children referred for psychiatric outpatient services were found to have language disorders when assessed by standardized procedures, a higher number than reported in previous studies. Significant interrelationships between language disorders and attention deficit disorders were found. Analyses of prevalence rates, gender ratios, and selected psychosocial factors led to reformulation of approaches to assessment and treatment of young children with severe psychiatric problems.

No abstract