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Why Women Lose Weight—or Don’t
But the Cornell study also seems to indicate that underweight women are much more influenced by media imagery than overweight women are. There's some evidence that heavier women are more likely to take their cues from the people they see around them instead. That theory was bolstered recently when a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that having overweight friends makes people much more likely to carry extra pounds themselves. "If more of their friends are overweight, maybe that changes their perception of what it means to be overweight," Neighbors says. They may simply see being fat as the new normal.
That may not be quite as bad as it sounds, if it makes women feel better about their bodies. A recent University of Minnesota study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health examined the relationship between body satisfaction and BMI five years later among a group of overweight teen girls. Researchers Patricia van den Berg and Dianne Neumark-Sztainer found that overweight girls who were more comfortable with their bodies were less likely to gain weight as they entered young adulthood. The Minnesota research suggests that girls who felt good about themselves were more likely to be physically active and pay more attention to what they ate. They didn't lose much weight, but they made healthy lifestyle changes that at least prevented them from gaining more weight. Meanwhile, the researchers found that the girls who were the most dissatisfied with their size tended to become more sedentary over time and paid less attention to maintaining a healthy diet. Those who were unhappy with their bodies were, in fact, more likely to gain more weight. If the same holds true on a larger scale, then encouraging women to love and care for their bodies—even when they don't match the Hollywood ideal—may be one way to reverse or at least slow the progression of the obesity epidemic.
Maybe our New Year's resolution should be to love ourselves enough to be the healthiest we can be, instead of constantly beating ourselves up that we're not a real size 2. That's something to think about as we squeeze into our dress jeans and head for the holiday buffet.
© 2007
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Member Comments
Posted By: Hedwigsheart @ 05/26/2008 1:06:31 AM
Comment: What the HELL makes you think you have the right to ruin another person's body image and self confidence? You may not be fat, but you are a shallow, lookist, vapid, narcissic, depressing, cynical, caustic, insensitive, rude and utterly contemptible excuse for a human being.
Posted By: letha c. chamberlain @ 04/05/2008 1:09:08 AM
Comment: I am one of those nurses who took care of 400 pound people who is now permanently disabled myself because of it. I literally starve myself to keep my weight in line because I don't want to get into the same condition--or have others have to care for me like that--because when one can't move one doesn't burn off many calories--so one just can't burn many calories (I can't move my arms and legs due to spinal conditions, so no aerobic exercise for me--not even walking...) It is a pitiful state to be in--but worthwhile keeping my weight down. Unfortunately people comment about my eating patterns-always pushing food, or thinking I'm not eating enough. I know what I can eat and cannot. It's a life-long "spiritual exercise" of discipline and love--love for me and my God--who has been so abundant in all ways. I know people are really worried--but this concern comes out of not knowing that humankind is eating too much in this country. 'nuff said.
Posted By: Terrils @ 03/31/2008 5:27:56 PM
Comment: If you have no underlying medical condition, weight loss is free, and it's simple. What it isn't is easy and fast. It's slow and tiresome, but all it takes is this: eat less and move more. Neither of those two things costs you money.