Predictors of body dissatisfaction in boys and girls with asthma.
BACKGROUND
Body satisfaction is an important issue for youth. Youth with more severe asthma may have experiences and emotions associated with less body satisfaction; however, this has not been studied.


OBJECTIVE
To identify correlates of body dissatisfaction in youth with asthma.


METHODS
Sixty-three females and 60 males, ages 8-18 years with asthma, completed measures of body dissatisfaction, anxiety, depression, asthma symptoms, and behaviors. Parents completed measures of asthma limitations; clinicians rated asthma severity.


RESULTS
Anxiety, depression, and body mass index (BMI) accounted for 21 and 15% of the variance in body dissatisfaction for females and males, respectively. Physical activity added 13% variance to the above model for females. Asthma symptoms added 14% for males. Of note, neither parent ratings of asthma limitations nor clinician ratings of asthma severity contributed additional variance.


CONCLUSIONS
This study increases our understanding of youth with asthma and provides future research directions.
Kelsay
Kimberly
K
National Jewish Medical and Research Center, 1400 Jackson St. Suite A206, Denver, Colorado 80206, USA. kelsayk@njc.org
Hazel
Nicholas A
NA
Wamboldt
Marianne Z
MZ
D001249:Asthma / Q000523:psychology*; D001828:Body Image; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires