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PubMed1988

Patient perceptions and weight loss of obese adults.

Little is known about the relative importance of self-image, physician attention to obesity, weight-loss program participation, exercise, self-motivation, and nutrition knowledge in the process of weight loss. Fifty-six obese adults who had been patients in a university family practice setting for at least five years between 1980 and 1986 were surveyed by telephone. Questions were designed to determine factors considered important to obese individuals in their weight-loss efforts and to determine factors related to weight loss among obese individuals. Nearly all of the survey participants felt that they had a good knowledge of nutrition and that they applied their knowledge of nutrition to their daily eating. They did not feel that additional knowledge of nutrition would help them control their obesity. Participants reporting physician attention to their obesity and recent weight-loss program experience were more likely to be categorized as weight losers over the five-year interval. Factors felt to be important in their weight loss by most patients who lost weight at some time were exercise and self-motivation.

Body Weight↗
PubMed1985

The measurement of differential thresholds for lifted weights by microcomputer-controlled apparatus.

The measurement of differential thresholds (DLs) for lifted weights normally involves lengthy test sessions. This is due partly to the statistical techniques for measuring the threshold and partly to the methods adopted to present the stimuli. Attempts to speed up test procedures tend to produce unreliable DL estimates, or to measure the sense of force or effort rather than weight perception. To facilitate the measurement of DLs for lifted weights, an Apple microcomputer was programmed to generate Wetherill tracking procedures and was interfaced with two stimulus bearing turntables. Various lifting methods are easily implemented, and DLs are reliably and quickly measured. The adaptation of the apparatus for general use in investigating the haptic sense modality is discussed.

Computers↗
PubMed1996

Adolescents' perceptions of relative weight and self-reported weight-loss activities: analysis of 1990 YRBS (Youth Risk behavior Survey) national data.

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study was to examine, among public high school students across the United States, perceptions of relative weight-loss and its relationship to physical activity levels, time spent viewing television, and efforts to lose weight. METHODS: Self-reported data from the 1990 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) were used to analyze these relationships. The YRBS was developed and administered by the Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to assess important health behaviors which contribute significantly to adverse health outcomes among American youth. A total of 10,870 black, Hispanic, and white respondents were included in this analysis. RESULTS: From this sample, 24.8% perceived themselves as being "too fat." Of that group, 76.4% were trying to lose weight. Females comprised 74.4% of those reporting that they were "too fat" and trying to lose weight. Gender differences in weight perceptions were significant (p < .001), with females (34.6%) being more likely than males (14.4%) to report being "too fat." Whites (26.0%) reported being "too fat" more often than did Hispanics (23.9%) and blacks (17.2%) (p < .001). Skipping meals and exercise were the most commonly reported weight loss strategies. Hispanics were most likely to skip meals, followed by whites and blacks. Whites were more likely than the other groups to use exercise as a means of losing weight. Adolescents who perceived themselves as "too fat" reported fewer days of strenuous activity (p < .001), fewer hours of strenuous exercise in physical education class (p < .001), and more hours spent viewing television on school days (p < .001) than others. CONCLUSIONS: One quarter of U.S. high school students perceive themselves as overweight; three-quarters of these students are trying to lose weight. Adolescents who perceive themselves as overweight are less physically active and spend more time viewing television than those who do not perceive themselves as overweight.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Weigh(t)ing for awareness.

We wished to learn if weight perception can be extinguished by studying two patients with right hemisphere brain damage. When lifting weights simultaneously, a patient with right frontal damage was not biased in her judgments of which weight was heavier. By contrast, a patient with right parietal damage reported left-sided weights as being lighter than those on the right. Psychophysical power functions revealed that her awareness of increasing weights on the left was dampened compared to the right when lifting weights individually on each side. Strikingly, her awareness of weight changes on the left was completely abolished when she lifted weights in both hands simultaneously. She demonstrated an unusual split in awareness, being motorically aware of and actively engaged with left-sided weights while being unaware of their incremental changes.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

How important are changes in body weight for mass perception?

It is often assumed that weight judgements depend primarily on the effort experienced in lifting an object against a 1-G force. Changes in effort and in other weight-cues certainly alter apparent heaviness; but there is a tendency towards mass-constancy when such changes are unrelated to mass. Under water or altered G, both the observer's body and other objects change their effective weight: the change in the former probably provides a cue to the latter. Mass-constancy increases with opportunity for adaptation to the change, leaving a negative aftereffect on return to normal circumstances. The discrimination of weight or mass also deteriorates with sudden changes in arm weight, just as it does with other types of maladaptation and with a reduction in sensory cues. The relative importance of arm weight and other factors has not been precisely measured, but experiments in prolonged spaceflight should help to elucidate the issue.

Arm↗
PubMed2006

Maternal perceptions of her child's body weight in infancy and early childhood and their relation to body weight status at age 7.

INTRODUCTION: Maternal perception of her child's weight status has been hypothesised to affect a child's weight development. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this analysis was to determine in how far the maternal weight perception of her child's weight at different ages is related to its future body weight status. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Longitudinal data on body weight, height and skinfolds from the Dortmund Nutritional and Anthropometric Longitudinally Designed Study were used to determine the risk of being overweight at age 7. Complete data on anthropometry, maternal weight perception and confounding variables were available for 253 children. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Maternal weight perception assessments at age 6 months, 12 months, 2 years and 4 years of age were related to body weight status as well as changes in body mass index standard deviation score (BMI-SDS) and skinfold SDS between age at assessment and age 7. With respect to the risk of being overweight at age 7, no independent effect of maternal perception was found. When changes in anthropometric measures were considered, it could be observed that children whose weight was considered too low gained more weight until age 7, and those who were considered to be too heavy lost more weight as compared to the children whose weight was considered to be just right. Among infants aged 6 months who were above the 85th percentile, maternal misperception appeared to promote an unfavourable weight development. These latter results support the hypothesis that maternal weight perception might affect a child's weight development. CONCLUSION: As our data suggest, this effect might begin to operate already in infancy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Patient perception of their weight, attempts to lose weight and their diabetes status.

INTRODUCTION: Patients' self perception of weight status is a factor to be considered before an attempt is made by the clinician to initiate weight loss behaviour. METHOD: We compared the weight self assessment of 1973 general practice patients to their body mass index (BMI). Patients also ranked the success of any weight loss methods they had tried. General practitioners recorded the patients' type 2 diabetes status and this was analysed by BMI group. RESULTS: Overweight/obese patients accounted for 56.6% of the sample. Forty percent of overweight and 12.5% of obese patients did not see themselves as overweight. Close to 40% of patients had attempted to lose weight in the previous year. Diet/ exercise was the most common and successful weight loss method. There was a significantly higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes among obese patients. DISCUSSION: Despite some positive results on weight loss attempts, a considerable proportion of overweight and some obese patients do not perceive themselves as being overweight.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Self-perception of body weight among high school students in Taipei, Taiwan.

Self-perception of body weight and other weight-related factors were assessed among 2665 Taipei, Taiwan high school students. A high percent of the girls (70.7%) and boys (42.2%) reported that they were too fat and these percentages were much higher than those reported by U.S. students in a recent Youth Risk Behavior Survey. In addition, only 13.2% of girls and 22.0% of boys reported being completely satisfied with their weight and the level of dissatisfaction with weight appeared to be greater than among U.S. students. Yet, in comparison to U.S. students, the Taiwanese students were considerably less likely than their U.S. counterparts to engage in weight management practices (e.g., dieting, eating less food, using diet pills). Taiwanese students with a self-perception of being too fat were more likely than those with perceptions of being just right or too thin to engage in weight management practices, to be dissatisfied with their weight, feel that they were unattractive, estimate that their same-sex peers were trying to lose weight, and have a higher body mass index. The findings from this study showed a relationship between self-perception of body size and engaging in weight control behaviors was consistent with other research. It suggested that self-perception of body weight, more so than objective weight status, was predictive of weight loss behavior and also negative psychological outcomes associated with poor body weight image. As a result, self-perception of weight may be an important point of focus for the design and implementation of clinical and public health initiatives targeted at this adolescent population as well as others.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Weight satisfaction and dieting practices among college males in Taiwan.

OBJECTIVE: To obtain baseline data regarding body mass index (BMI), weight satisfaction and weight perception in male college students. Approaches used to lose weight and characteristics of dieters were also investigated. METHODS: Written questionnaires and height and weight measurements were used to collect data. Nine-hundred thirty male college students selected by multiple stage sampling among colleges in Taiwan participated in this study. Simple frequency and ANOVA were used to analyze data. Post hoc analyses were performed with the LSD test when the F ratio for the ANOVA was significant at p<0.05. RESULTS: The mean BMI for all subjects was 21.7. Males with a BMI < or =22.5 are considered thin by Taiwanese and world standards. Yet 34% of these males were attempting to lose weight and 14% percent perceived themselves as either overweight or obese. Exercise was the main approach to losing weight for subjects in all weight categories. Subjects in the dissatisfied/dieting group tended to measure body weight more frequently (p<0.05), spent more time exercising and reading nutrition information (p<0.05) and skipped breakfast and lunch more frequently (p<0.05) than non-dieters. Male dieters ate fewer vegetables and less meat than non-dieters. CONCLUSIONS: Male college students had frequent misconceptions and dissatisfaction with their body weight. Behavioral characteristics among those dissatisfied with their weight indicate they are at risk for developing eating disorders.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Visual perception of lifted weight from kinematic and static (photographic) displays.

Observers of patch-light videotape displays can reliably discriminate levels of lifted weight; accuracy of judgments sometimes approximates that achieved when the observers themselves lift weighted boxes. Results of 6 studies reveal impressive levels of visual weight discrimination based on static displays (photographs) of certain action phases sampled from videos of entire lifting-carrying events. Slow and controlled actions (e.g., walking, placing box on table) supported optimum weight discrimination for both photographic and video displays, whereas the action of lifting a box yielded high levels of discrimination only for video displays. Static and kinematic specification of dynamics, as well as the work by painters and photographers to depict humans and other animals in action, is discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Kinematic form and scaling: further investigations on the visual perception of lifted weight.

Observers are able to judge accurately the weight lifted by another person when only the motions of reflective patches attached to the lifter's major limb joints and head can be seen (Runeson & Frykholm, 1981). What properties of these complex kinematic patterns allow judgments of weight to be made? The pattern of variation in velocity of the lifted object over position is explored as a source of information for weight: It is found to provide limited information. How are variations in kinematic patterns scaled to allow judgments of weight, a kinetic quantity? The possibility of a source of information for scaling in the kinematics is investigated. Judgments based only on patch-light displays are accurate to a degree that is improved by an extrinsic scaling basis. Finally, the sensitivity to scaling of alternative metrics used in judging is explored. Intrinsic metrics are discovered to be less sensitive to the absence of an extrinsic basis for scaling.

Concept Formation↗
PubMed2000

Accuracy of teen and parental reports of obesity and body mass index.

OBJECTIVES: Adolescent obesity is becoming an increasing public health problem. This study determines: 1) differences in teen and parental report of obesity, 2) amount of misclassification using body mass index (BMI) from self-reported versus measured height and weight as an indicator of obesity, and 3) whether misclassification varies by gender and socioeconomic status. DESIGN: Weighted data from 15 483 baseline (T1) youth and parental interviews from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used. Seventy-four percent of teens were reinterviewed 1 year later (T2). Parents reported socioeconomic status indicators and whether their teen was obese. Teens reported height, weight, and weight perception. BMI was calculated from both self-reported height and weight at T1 and T2 and from measured height and weight at T2. Those with a BMI > or =95% corrected for age and gender were considered obese. RESULTS: At T1, nearly one half of teens (47%) reporting they were very overweight were not obese by BMI. For teens obese by BMI, 19.6% were reported to be obese by both parent and teen, 6.4% by teen only, 29. 9% by parent only, and 44.2% by neither teen nor parent. For those with persistent obesity, teen and/or parental report failed to identify more than one third (34%) as obese; 23.4% were identified by both teen and parent report, 5.4% by teen report only, and 37.2% by parent only. At T2, the correlation between BMI calculated from self-reported versus measured height and weight for the overall population was very strong (r = .92). Specificity of obesity status based on self-reported BMI, compared with obesity status based on measured BMI was .996; sensitivity, .722; positive predictive value, .860; and negative predictive value, .978. Overall, 3.8% of teens were misclassified using self-report measures. Girls were no more likely than boys to be misclassified as obese using BMI from self-reported height and weight. CONCLUSIONS: Parental report is a better indicator of obesity than teen report of weight status, but parental and teen reports are both poor predictors of adolescent obesity. Using BMI based on self-reported height and weight correctly classified 96% as to obesity status. Thus, studies can use self-reported height and weight to understand teen obesity and its correlates/sequelae.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Pediatricians' own weight: self-perception, misclassification, and ease of counseling.

OBJECTIVES: Pediatricians underdiagnose overweight and feel ineffective at counseling. Given the relationship between physicians' health and health habits and counseling behaviors, we sought to determine the 1) percentage of pediatricians who are overweight; 2) accuracy of pediatricians' own weight status classification; and 3) relationship between weight self-perception and perceived ease of obesity counseling. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: This study was a cross-sectional, mail survey of North Carolina pediatricians that queried about their weight status and ease of counseling. Accuracy of pediatricians' self-classification of weight status was compared with BMIs derived from self-reported height and weight. Using logistic regression, controlling for potential confounding variables, we examined the association between weight perception and ease of counseling. RESULTS: The unadjusted response rate was 62%, and the adjusted response rate was 71% (n = 355). Nearly one-half (49%) of overweight pediatricians did not identify themselves as such. Men had greater adjusted odds of misclassifying overweight than women [odds ratio (OR), 3.61; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.81, 7.21]. Self-classified "thin" pediatricians had nearly six times the odds of reporting more counseling difficulty as a result of their weight than "average" weight pediatricians (OR = 5.69; 95% CI = 2.30, 14.1), and self-identified "overweight" pediatricians reported nearly four times as great counseling difficulty as "average" weight physicians (OR = 3.84; 95% CI = 1.11, 13.3), after adjustment for self-reported BMI weight status and other potential confounders. DISCUSSION: The roles that physician weight misclassification and self-perception potentially play in influencing rates of obesity counseling warrant further research.

Body Mass Index↗
PubMed2001

Weight loss attempts and attitudes toward body size, eating, and physical activity in American Indian children: relationship to weight status and gender.

OBJECTIVE: This study examined dieting, weight perceptions, and self-efficacy to eat healthy foods and engage in physical activity and their relationships to weight status and gender among American Indian elementary schoolchildren. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Data for this study were collected as part of the baseline examination for the Pathways study. Participants were 1441 second- through third-grade American Indian children in 41 schools representing seven tribes in Arizona, New Mexico, and South Dakota who filled out a questionnaire and had heights and weights taken. RESULTS: Forty-two percent of the children were overweight or obese. No differences were found between overweight/obese and normal weight children for healthy food intentions or self-efficacy. Heavier children (especially those with body mass index > 95th percentile) were more likely to have tried to lose weight or were currently trying to lose weight. No gender differences were found. Normal weight children chose a slightly heavier body size as most healthy compared with overweight/obese children. DISCUSSION: The results indicate that children are concerned about their weight and that weight modification efforts are common among overweight American Indian children. School, community, and family-based programs are needed to help young people adopt lifelong healthful eating and physical activity practices.

Arizona↗
PubMed1981

Visual perception of lifted weight.

The weight of a box can be seen by observing another person lifting and carrying it. Evidence is provided in two experiments, the first of which employed videotaped events with the actor and box visible only as 21 bright patches. Observers judged the weight of the box rather linearly with an average slope of .87 and with a pooled standard deviation of 3.8 kg. The second experiment compared visual and haptic perception of box weight in similar events under conditions of live action. Average slopes of 1.00 in the visual mode and 1.20 in the haptic mode were obtained with standard deviations of 3.1 kg and 2.0 kg, respectively. It is concluded that the weight of the box, as a dynamic variable of the event, is well specified in the kinematic pattern and hence in the optic array. Furthermore, the visual system is efficient in picking up such information.

Cues↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Health risk behavior assessment: nutrition, weight, and tobacco use in one urban seventh-grade class.

Health attitudes and behaviors develop in childhood and progress through adolescence into adulthood. To better understand the health risk behaviors being undertaken by a seventh-grade urban population, a study was conducted to identify what health risk behaviors a group of adolescents were participating in. The purpose of this study was to describe (1) the types of health risk behaviors being undertaken, (2) the frequency of their taking health risk behaviors, and (3) the age of initiation of the health risk behavior. The findings from this study indicate that this sample of 54, urban seventh graders suffers from multidimensional health needs. These students participated in a variety of health risk behaviors, as measured by the Youth Risk Behaviors Surveillance System Questionnaire. These students have begun to smoke regularly, which correlated with the use of alcohol. They rate their health as being good or excellent but rarely met the daily requirements for intake of fruits and vegetables. And, although they rate their weight as being acceptable, most are trying to lose weight. Additionally, differences between the boys and girls were noted in weight perception, with girls more likely than boys to use smoking as the primary method of weight control. Nursing is in an ideal position to provide effective primary care interventions and community health outreach to this adolescent population.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Higher order and lower order variables in the visual perception of relative pulling force.

In 7 experiments, undergraduates judged the force exerted by a videotaped standing puller, a computer-generated (stick-figure) puller, or a computer-generated inverted pendulum. Single and stepwise multiple regression analyses determined the kinematic variables exploited by the participants. Results show that (a) judgments correlated highly with force and improved with feedback; (b) judgments correlated more highly with lower order kinematic variables than with force itself; (c) participants differed in the kinematic variables exploited; (d) participants changed over blocks of trials in the variables exploited; (e) some participants used compound kinematic variables; (f) the variables exploited depended on the type of feedback; and (g) judgments to upright pullers, inverted pullers, and simple pendula showed the same qualitative patterns. Implications for theories of direct perception, directed perception, and heuristics are considered.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Affluent adolescent girls of Delhi: eating and weight concerns.

Despite a dramatic increase in research on eating-related pathologies, gaps remain in our understanding of the factors responsible for the development and maintenance of dysfunctional attitudes and behaviour related to weight and eating among adolescents. A study was therefore conducted to compare eating and weight concerns among underweight, normal-weight and obese affluent adolescent girls in New Delhi. The sample comprised fifty underweight, fifty normal-weight and thirty obese girls, 16-18 years of age. Information was collected about their body image perception, weight concerns and eating attitudes by a well-structured questionnaire. Dietary intake was determined by 24 h recall and a food-frequency questionnaire. Body size was adjudged by measurements of weight, height, waist, hip and mid upper arm circumferences, and the BMI and waist : hip ratio were determined. Of the subjects, 99.2 % had a gynoid pattern of fat distribution. Concerns about excess weight were prevalent among the adolescent girls, even among those who were normal-weight and underweight. The level of satisfaction with body size decreased with increase in weight. Dieting behaviour was reported in a higher number of obese (76.6 %) compared with normal-weight (38 %) and underweight (14 %) girls. Of the obese girls, 43.3 % were found to be at a significantly (P=0.00109) greater risk of developing anorexia in the future. Characteristic dietary features of adolescence, such as missing meals, snacking and eating out, were observed. While the diets of most of the subjects were adequate in Ca, thiamin, riboflavin and vitamin C, they were found to be deficient in energy, protein, Fe, niacin, vitamin A and fibre. Thus, it is important to recognize that weight concerns and dissatisfaction with body size may pose a threat to a healthy nutritional state, and may develop into precursors of a later eating disturbance.

Adolescent↗