The obesity problem in America is likely to continue because one in two overweight college students have in mind an ideal body weight that is still overweight, a new study suggests.
"About half of the overweight women, and more than half of overweight men we surveyed have an ideal weight that would keep them classified as overweight," said lead study author Lori Neighbors, a registered dietician and assistant professor of nutrition at Cornell University in New York.
Neighbors showed students a pictured scale of body shapes, from thin to large, and had them pick which one they thought represented their current body type. Then she had them choose the most ideal body, in addition to current and desired weight.
It's not that fat students want to remain fat, Neighbors said. Rather, they are aware of the difficulty of shedding pounds.
Fifty percent of the underweight women surveyed by Neighbors, on the other hand, said that they would like to maintain an unhealthy slimness — or shed even more pounds.
"Thinner women might receive some social benefits that encourage them to keep their thin status," Neighbors said, although she said the study did not address what those benefits might be. "We need to find some ways to take focus off of a thin ideal and look out for their health."
Overweight individuals are more likely to prematurely perish from cardiovascular disease, cancer and kidney failure, while underweight people face the risks of anemia, bone loss and heart irregularities. An untimely death is significantly higher for both categories.
The research, detailed in a recent edition of the journal Eating Behaviors, was funded primarily by the National Institutes of Health.
Source: Xinhua/Agencies
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article