Body size estimation in obese children: a controlled study with the video distortion method

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the reliability of the video distortion method in obese children and compare their body image with the body perception of non-obese peers.

Design: A standardized series of body size estimations: cognitive (what subjects 'think' they look like), affective (what they 'feel' they look like), and optative (what they 'wish' to look like).

Subjects: Fourty-one obese children (16 boys and 25 girls, average 12 years old) and 42 age-matched control subjects.

Measurements: Comparison of percentages of deviation from the accurate body image.

Results: The method was shown to be sufficiently reliable in young subjects. Compared with controls, obese children were more accurate in estimating their real body width, but desired to reduce their body size by about 25%.

Conclusion: The video distortion method can be used as a reliable instrument to assess body perception in obese children.