A new visual image rating scale for females: correlations with measures of relative fatness, weight dissatisfaction, and body-esteem.

A new Visual Image Rating Scale for females was developed from a computer-reconstructed photograph to produce figures with realistic three-dimensional contour and different types of fat and muscle distribution. Correlations between choice of figures selected by a group of college women on two occasions two weeks apart gave significant test-retest stability. To estimate the construct validity of the scale in assessing body satisfaction, at the time the scale was first administered 77 undergraduate women were asked to select the figure closest to their current physique and to complete the Body-esteem Scale. Figure selection was highly correlated with relative fatness as measured by Body Mass Index and with scores on the Weight Concern subscale of the Body-esteem Scale. The utility of the scale for women of color or for women of a wider range of age and socioeconomic status remains to be evaluated.

Current and ideal physique choices in exercising and nonexercising college women from a pilot athletic image scale.

An Athletic Image Scale including female physiques with and without muscular definition is currently in the developmental phase. With shading, contouring, and three-dimensionality not offered previously on figure-rating scales, this instrument was designed to examine an apparent growing interest on the part of women in atheletic body-image ideals. The athletic level of each figure on the scale was based on responses of a group of college women. The 30-figure pilot scale was then tested by rating current and ideal body-shape preferences of two groups of first-year college women, 65 who exercised regularly and 45 who engaged in no regular exercise. Analysis showed no relationship between current and ideal physique choice and exercise status. Most exercising and nonexercising women chose a mesomorphic ideal physique with upper-body muscularity unlikely to occur without substantial amounts of physical activity. The associations among exercise status, figure choice, subscale scores on the Eating Disorder Inventory, and Self-esteem Scale scores were also examined. Women choosing moderately mesomorphic figures as their current shape had the lowest Body Dissatisfaction scale scores on the Eating Disorder Inventory irrespective of exercise status. Current- and ideal-shape preferences were not related to self-esteem scores. The pilot Athletic Image Scale offered several figures which seemed to be relevant to women although it must be noted that the scale purposely emphasized particular physiques. Even so, it is important to recognize that greater than sixty percent of the women preferred images with athletic physiques which are not offered on figurerating scales presently in use.

Health implications of Mediterranean diets in light of contemporary knowledge. 1. Plant foods and dairy products.

Several carefully studied populations in Mediterranean countries and in some areas in Asia where traditional diets consisted largely of foods of plant origin exhibit low rates of many chronic diseases and long life expectancies. Many case-control and prospective studies have provided further evidence that high consumption of plant foods confers numerous health benefits. Investigations support links between increased vegetable, fruit, and fiber consumption, and lower rates of several cancers, coronary heart disease (CHD), neural tube defects, and cataracts. Although the mechanisms are not fully understood, carotenoids, folic acid, and fiber, all abundant in the Mediterranean diet, appear to play important roles in prevention of these diseases. In contrast, much evidence suggests that high consumption of full-fat dairy products is likely to increase CHD risk. Epidemiologic studies have not provided evidence that high dairy product consumption by adults prevents fractures; in fact, the results of several studies suggest positive associations. Thus, the abundant fruit, vegetables, and whole grains, and the low to moderate intake of dairy products in traditional Mediterranean diets are likely to have contributed to the low rates of numerous chronic diseases observed in these populations.

Health implications of Mediterranean diets in light of contemporary knowledge. 2. Meat, wine, fats, and oils.

Consumption of beef, pork, and lamb has traditionally been low in Mediterranean countries. Regular consumption of red meat has been associated in epidemiologic studies with increased risks of coronary heart disease (CHD) and colon and other cancers; possible mechanisms may involve dietary cholesterol, saturated fat, heme iron, and the presence of carcinogens formed in cooking. Also, high consumption of red meat, the major source of animal protein in most Western diets, increases urinary calcium losses and is therefore likely to contribute to osteoporotic fractures. In Mediterranean diets the major source of dietary fat has traditionally been olive oil, which, compared with saturated and partially hydrogenated fats, reduces low-density-lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and, compared with carbohydrates, increases high-density-lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. A wealth of epidemiologic evidence supports a potent protective effect of moderate alcohol consumption against CHD, probably in part by increasing HDL concentrations. Although dietary factors alone may not fully explain the excellent health of Mediterranean populations, available evidence strongly suggests important contributions of high consumption of fruit, vegetables, and whole grains; moderate intake of alcohol; and low consumption of animal products, saturated and hydrogenated fats, and refined carbohydrates.