Relationships of Body Image, Body Stress and Eating Attitude, and Dietary Quality in Middle School Girls Based on Their BMI

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the body image, body stress, eating attitude, and dietary quality in middle school girls. Questionnaires were administered to one hundred fifty seven middle school girls in Seoul area. The subjects were categorized into the five groups according to their body mass index (BMI); 1) severely under-weight (BMI or = 25 kg/m2). 7.0%, 14.6%, 58.9%, 10.2%, and 10.2% of the subjects were classified as severely under-weight, under-weight, normal weight, overweight and obese groups, respectively. Regardless of the BMI, the subjects had disturbed body image, body stress, and poor eating attitude. The actual BMIs of the normal weight, overweight and obese subjects were significantly different from their desired BMI and perceived BMI, representing these subjects dissatisfied their body shape. Almost all subjects tried to lose their body weight even in the severely under-weight and under-weight groups. There were significant correlations of BMI with body image disturbance (p < 0.05), body stress (p < 0.01) and eating attitude (p < 0.05). These results indicated that middle school girls who have higher BMI seemed to have more body image distortion, body stress and risk of eating disorder. However, any significant difference in dietary quality among the five groups was not observed even though their dietary patterns were not balanced. As a conclusion, it is required that middle school girls should correct their distorted body image and body stress. Also, efforts to improve eating attitude, dietary pattern and nutritional status in the middle school girls are needed.