So many women are overweight or obese these days that a surprising number of them just don't see a problem: a new study reveals that nearly 25 percent of overweight women mistakenly describe their weight as "normal." Their views aren't based on numbers on the scale, but on how they perceive themselves, say researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. The researchers noted that more than half of reproductive-aged women in the United States are considered overweight or obese by body mass index (BMI) standards, and that 82 percent of African-American women and 75 percent of Mexican American women meet the criteria for being overweight or obese. The investigators analyzed data on more than 2,200 women 18 to 25 years old. In addition to BMI, they collected information from the women about their weight perceptions and weight-related behaviors such as dieting, skipping meals, smoking cigarettes, avoiding carbohydrates and exercise. The study was published in the December, 2010, issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
My take? Experts have suspected for some time that people look to their peers to determine what constitutes acceptable weight. The women in this new study may have drawn their perceptions of normal weight from the people they see around them, rather than any reliance on the scale, BMI or "ideal" height/weight charts. "Average" is not the same as "normal" or "healthy," and we're not going to make any progress against the obesity epidemic if individuals who are overweight or obese don't see their size realistically.
If you want to look to others for something, positive attitudes are a better alternative.
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