Women and weight: fad and fiction.
In this article, I argue that women's concern with body weight is a "fad," when taken in an historical context, and is limited to Western societies. I have presented evidence that the following aspects of weight are myths rather than reality: (a) There are objective definitions of obesity; (b) obesity is prevalent among women; (c) obese people take in more calories than the nonobese; (d) dieting is an effective way to reduce weight; and (e) obesity is related to poor physical health.
Rothblum
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Department of Psychology, University of Vermont, Burlington 05405-0134.
D001294:Attitude to Health; D001835:Body Weight; D004038:Diet, Reducing / Q000523:psychology; D002149:Energy Intake; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D007062:Identification, Psychological; D009765:Obesity / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000178:diet therapy / Q000523:psychology*