title: Who wants a slimmer body? The relationship between body weight status, education level and body shape dissatisfaction among young adults in Hong Kong.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Body shape dissatisfaction has been thought to have an indispensable impact on weight control behaviors. We investigated the prevalence of body shape dissatisfaction (BSD) and explored its association with weight status, education level and other determinants among young adults in Hong Kong.
  
  
  METHODS
  Information on anthropometry, BSD, and socio-demographics was collected from a random sample of 1205 young adults (611 men and 594 women) aged 18-27 in a community-based household survey. BSD was defined as a discrepancy between current and ideal body shape based on a figure rating scale. Cross-tabulations, homogeneity tests and logistic regression models were applied.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The percentages of underweight men and women were 16.5% and 34.9% respectively, and the corresponding percentages of being overweight or obese were 26.7% and 13.2% for men and women respectively. Three-quarters of young adults had BSD. Among women, 30.9% of those underweight and 75.5% of those with normal weight desired a slimmer body shape. Overweight men and underweight women with lower education level were more likely to have a mismatch between weight status and BSD than those with higher education level. After controlling for other determinants, underweight women were found to have a higher likelihood to maintain their current body shapes than other women. Men were found to be less likely to have a mismatch between weight status and BSD than women.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Overweight and obesity in men and underweight in women were prevalent among Hong Kong young adults. Inappropriate body shape desire might predispose individuals to unhealthy weight loss or gain behaviors. Careful consideration of actual weight status in body shape desire is needed in health promotion and education, especially for underweight and normal weight women and those with a low education level.
authors: Centre for Health Policy, Programs and Economics, School of PopulationHealth, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
authors: Yee Tak Derek
authors: YT
authors: Cheung
authors: Antoinette Marie
authors: AM
authors: Lee
authors: Sai Yin
authors: SY
authors: Ho
authors: Edmund Tsze Shing
authors: ET
authors: Li
authors: Tai Hing
authors: TH
authors: Lam
authors: Susan Yun Sun
authors: SY
authors: Fan
authors: Paul Siu Fai
authors: PS
authors: Yip
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000886:Anthropometry; D001828:Body Image; D003625:Data Collection; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006723:Hong Kong; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D013851:Thinness / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult