The pursuit of thinness: a study of Dublin schoolgirls aged 15 y

Abstract

Despite increasing trends in the prevalence of overweight and obesity, fatness phobia is common during female adolescence. This study has demonstrated a high level of dissatisfaction with body weight in a sample of Dublin schoolgirls aged 15 y. Of 420 subjects, 59% reported that they wanted to be slimmer and 68% had previously tried to lose weight. Contrary to expectations, overweight girls were not found to hold the monopoly on such dissatisfactions. Normal weight and even underweight girls also expressed a desire to be thinner and reported using unhealthy weight control practices including random avoidance of staple foods, fasting, smoking and purging, in their pursuit of the perfect' female ®gure. Obesity prevention programmes which target adolescent girls at risk' of overweight and obesity, must take cognizance of their profound fear of fatness, otherwise the use of harmful slimming strategies may be further increased as teenage girls frantically try to lose weight and to avoid the stigma associated with female fatness.

Dietary intakes, eating style and overweight in the Stanislas Family Study

“…The consequences of restrained eating and dieting during the teenage years has raised many concerns. 7 Therefore, these results should have implications for the prevention of obesity and eating disorders and may provide additional justi®cation for health promotion programs that target the family as the unit of intervention.…”

Associates of obesity and weight dissatisfaction among Finnish adolescents

“…The results of studies investigating weight satisfaction and weight perceptions among adolescents are quite consistent: weight dissatisfaction is common, especially among girls, with most dissatisfied girls thinking that they are too fat, while boys equally often see themselves as too thin as too fat 9,12,19 -23 . Weight perceptions have frequently been found to be unrealistic 9,12,19,20,24 . The finding in our study that regarding oneself as overweight was more prevalent among the underweight than among those of normal weight suggests that underweight adolescents may often have distorted body image.…”

Body mass index in 7–9-y-old French children: frequency of obesity, overweight and thinness

“…Indeed, the increase in prevalence of thinness is also of concern in industrialized countries, especially in young girls. 6 Actually, means or medians provide incomplete information if overweight and thinness are increasing simultaneously.…”