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. 2020 Aug 31;12(9):2658.
doi: 10.3390/nu12092658.

Dissatisfaction with Body Weight among Polish Adolescents Is Related to Unhealthy Dietary Behaviors

Agata Wawrzyniak  1 , Joanna Myszkowska-Ryciak  2 , Anna Harton  2 , Ewa Lange  2 , Wacław Laskowski  3 , Jadwiga Hamulka  1 , Danuta Gajewska  2
Affiliations

Dissatisfaction with Body Weight among Polish Adolescents Is Related to Unhealthy Dietary Behaviors

Agata Wawrzyniak et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

The aims of the study were to determine the socio-demographic factors that may affect body weight dissatisfaction and to analyze the relationship between eating habits and dissatisfaction with body weight among a national random sample of Polish adolescents aged 13-19 years. Data on gender, age, level of education, body weight status, screen time, body weight satisfaction and selected nutritional behaviors were collected using a questionnaire. Body mass status was assessed based on weight and height measurements. A total of 14,044 students from 207 schools participated in the study. A significant effect of gender, age, level of education, body weight status and screen time status on the participants' dissatisfaction with the body weight was observed. The greater prevalence of body weight satisfaction was observed among boys, younger subjects, secondary school students, adolescents with normal body weight status and those with screen time up to 2 h. Whereas girls, older study participants (17-19 years old), overweight/obese adolescents and subjects with screen time over 4 h were more often dissatisfied with body weight. Furthermore, it has been shown that participants dissatisfied with their body weight less often met dietary recommendations. These findings can help dietitians, nutritionists and healthcare professionals to provide age-specific and gender-specific nutrition strategies to promote healthy lifestyle among school-going adolescents.

Keywords: adolescents; dietary behaviors; dissatisfaction with body weight; socio-demographic factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The results of the analysis of correspondence of eating behaviors in SBW (satisfied with body weight—green) or DBW (dissatisfied with body weight—red) groups (n = 14,044).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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