Perception of body image and nutritional status in adolescents of public schools

Abstract

Objective: To assess body image dissatisfaction among adolescents from Northern Minas Gerais. Method: This is a cross-sectional study with adolescents of both sexes, enrolled in the sixth to ninth year in the municipal public education network. A questionnaire was used, composed of sociodemographic and body image variables, which was obtained through a scale of silhouette figures. The anthropometric measurements of weight and height were performed to estimate body mass index. The correlation between the classification of the body mass index and the body image of adolescents was estimated through weighted Kappa. Results: A total of 535 adolescents participated, and 24.5% had different classifications between the real and ideal body image. The Kappa index for the classification of body image was 0.51, 0.58 and 0.32 for the total of adolescents, girls and boys, respectively. Conclusion: Public school adolescents are dissatisfied with their self-body image.

Body image perception and body composition in early adolescents: a longitudinal study of an Italian cohort

“…The fast morphological and psychosocial changes occurring during this period greatly influence body perception [8,9]. Adolescence represents a critical stage in the development of positive or negative body image [10,11].…”

“…During early adolescence, for example, most girls place high importance on peer acceptance [18]. Among adolescents, there is often a desire and constant search for physical characteristics other than reality [19], which can cause body image dissatisfaction [9,20,21]. In today's societies, there is an idealisation of a perfect body, which, in adolescents, if not achieved, could lead to body image disorders, in addition to the effects on health and behaviour [22][23][24].…”

Body Image Perception and Body Composition in Early Adolescents: A Longitudinal Study of an Italian Cohort

“…The fast morphological and psychosocial changes occurring during this period greatly in uences body perception [3,4]. Adolescence represents a critical stage in the development of positive or negative body image [5,6].…”

“…Among adolescents, there is often a desire and constant search for physical characteristics other than reality [13], which can cause body image dissatisfaction [14,15,4]. Such behaviour, according to its magnitude, may contribute to the occurrence of eating [13,15,16] and mental [17] disorders, which might compromise their social relations [13] and quality of life.…”

“…Body dissatisfaction is considered a predictor of ED and adolescence is a crucial phase for the positive or negative development of body image [5].Distortion and dissatisfaction with body image may form a link between overweight and obesity, as excessive preoccupation with appearance and unremitting pursuit of the perfect, lean body can generate negative feelings and devaluation, resulting in a change in the eating behaviour, leading to overweight or the development of ED [30].Surveillance of body image satisfaction among adolescents is necessary, since they may perceive their own body differently from its real size, shape and weight. Body image dissatisfaction may be a risk factor for the development of psychopathologies and as a mediator of the relation between nutritional status and emotional health [14,17,4]. Considering the negative results in health, it is important to understand the body dissatisfaction among young people, its change over time and the factors that can in uence it.…”