• Korean Journal of Family Medicine
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.355-359
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• 2018

Background: Body image is associated with the perception of people on themselves. Influencing factors are generated internally and/or externally. The most common issue pertaining to body image is body weight and weight loss. This study aimed to determine the association between body weight perception and weight loss practices among college students. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 297 college students from private nursing colleges in the state of Kelantan, Malaysia. A self-administered questionnaire was used to assess sociodemographic characteristics, body weight perception, and weight loss methods. Weight and height were measured, and body mass index (BMI) was calculated based on weight and height measurement. The World Health Organization BMI cutoffs were applied in the study. Results: More than half (54.2%) of college students perceived their weight correctly as per actual measured BMI. A total of 51.5% of participants had tried various methods to reduce their weight. Body weight perception is associated with weight loss practices (odds ratio, 0.31; 95% confidence interval, 0.19-0.50; P<0.001) adjusted for sex, marital status, and status of having obese family members. Those who had correct body weight perception were less likely to engage in weight loss practice. Food intake restriction (42.4%) is the most popular weight reduction method among students in nursing colleges. Over a quarter of the participants chose physical exercise (25.3%) to reduce their weight, and a small number engaged in unhealthy weight loss practices. Conclusion: Body weight perception is an important factor that influences the practice to reduce weight especially among young adult group and college students.

• Child Health Nursing Research
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.249-257
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• 2017

Purpose: The aim of this study was to assess the body weight perception of adolescents and to investigate the difference between mental health and weight control behavior according to body weight perception. Methods: Study data on 12-18 years old adolescents with normal BMI was obtained from the 6th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2013-2015). Rao-Scott Chi-square test and ANOVA were used for the analysis. Results: The percentage of adolescents with a misperception of body weight was 43.3%, and their subjective health status (p=.013), stress perception (p=.001), and depression (p=.001) were worse than for adolescents who had the correct perception of their body weight. The percentage of adolescents who were trying to lose weight while perceiving their body weight as normal was 36.9%. Body weight control behavior had significant differences according to dietary intake (frequency of eating dinner (p=.015)), energy intake (p=.004), and carbohydrate intake (p<.001), but there was no significant difference according to exercise. Conclusion: Parents, school teachers, and nurses should make efforts to ensure that Korean adolescents perceive their body weight correctly, and prevent unhealthy weight control behaviors.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.31-37
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• 2017

Objectives: We examined the relationships between the body mass index, body weight perception, and depressed mood in a nationally representative sample of Korean adolescents. Methods: We analyzed the data from the 2013 Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey and evaluated the relationships between the body mass index, body weight perception, and depressed mood by gender (36655 boys and 35780 girls). Results: For boys, a low body mass index and perceiving oneself as underweight were related to depressed mood. For girls, both low and high body mass indices were negatively related to depressed mood. In addition, self-perceptions of being underweight or overweight were positively related to depressed mood. Body weight perception was not a significant mediator in the relationship between body mass index and depressed mood. Conclusion: These results suggest that both body mass index and body weight perception significantly contribute to Korean adolescents' depressed mood. Thus, research and clinical attention needs to be given to underweight as well as overweight adolescents, because those who perceive their weight as not normal are at risk for depression.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.53-66
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• 2004

Purpose: To compare differences in BMI, body weight perception and satisfaction, and eating behavior by gender among middle school students. Methods: From 19 middle schools in W city four classes in two middle schools were selected by cluster sampling with multi-stage sampling. A structured questionnaire was answered by 143 adolescents. Results: Differences in BMI between boys and girls were significant (x$^2$=13.15, p=.00l). Boys reported higher ideal body weight than girls (t=6.33, p<.000l), and discrepancy between ideal body weight and body weight perception in girls was significantly greater than in boys(t=-5.0l, p<.0001). There was no significant gender difference in body weight perception but more boys were satisfied with their body weight(t=-4.48, p<.0001). Comparison of eating behavior showed that girls reported high scores in disinhibition (t=-2.29, p<.05) and hunger (t=-2.81, p<.01), while boys reported higher scores in cognitive restraints (t=3.22, p<.01). Conclusion: Interventions to help girls improve body image and satisfaction with body image are crucial. In order to establish proper diet habits and balanced nutritional status for adolescents, educational interventions should address characteristics of eating behaviors.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.359-365
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• 2017

Purpose: This study aims to investigate gender differences in the association between depressive symptoms and weight, weight perception, and body satisfaction among Korean adolescents. Methods: A secondary data analysis was performed on data from 33,374 adolescents who participated in the 2015 Adolescent Health Behavior Online Survey. They were classified as underweight, normal weight, or overweight/obese; weight perception was classified into perception of being underweight, normal weight, or overweight/obese; and weight satisfaction into desire to gain weight, satisfied, and desire to lose weight. Results: Among boys, perception of being underweight (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 1.20, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.07~1.35) and desire to gain weight (AOR: 1.45, 95% CI: 1.30~1.62) were associated with depression. Among girls, perception of being overweight or obese (AOR: 1.18, 95% CI: 1.07~1.29) and a desire to lose weight (AOR: 1.30, 95% CI: 1.18~1.42) were associated with depression. Conclusion: Gender differences were observed in the association between weight perception and depression in adolescents. The perception of being underweight among boys and the perception of being overweight/overweight among girls were associated with depression. Thus, gender-specific intervention programs to correct weight perception and weight satisfaction are needed in order to relieve depressive symptoms in adolescents.

• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.306-317
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• 2009

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess the characteristics of body weight perception and physiological index in young adult women. Methods: Subjects were 283 Korea women. Data was from the 2005 Korean National Health and Survey. Three groups-low normal and overweight-were based on Body mass index(BMI). General characteristics, health status perception, weight control behavior and physiological index such as BMI, total cholesterol, high-density cholesterol (HDL), low-density cholesterol (LDL), triglyceride, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and waist circumference were compared. Data were analyzed by t-test, $x^2$-test and ANOVA using SPSS program. Results: Of the normal weight group, 28.7% of subjects perceived themselves as overweight. Of the low weight group, 30.3% regarded their weight as normal weight. Of the overweight subjects, weight control was attempted by exercise (50.1%) and food reduction (77.1%). Significant group-related differences were evident in HDL, LDL, triglyceride, systolic blood pressure and waist circumference among three groups. Conclusions: Perception and attitude regarding body weight can be inaccurate. A weight control program should consider the relation of physiological index and weight based on BMI.

• Perspectives in Nursing Science
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.24-35
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• 2012

Purpose: This research was performed to investigate Korean adolescents' body weight perception, appropriate weight change efforts, and factors that influencing these efforts. Methods: The data were obtained from 68,136 adolescents, aged 12~18 years from the 2007 Third Korean Youth' Risk Behavior Web-based Survey. Descriptive statistical analysis and odds ratio were calculated by logistic regression. Results: The distribution of the body mass index differed in boys and girls. The accuracy of body weight perception was shown in the order of the underweight (91.6%), overweigh t (73.3%), normal weight (55.4%), obesity (41.3%) groups. Adolescents with high perceived economic status tended to have a high prevalence of accuracy of body weight perception. The distribution of appropriate weight change efforts according to the actual body mass index showed that girls were trying to lose weight more than boys. The results of a logistic regression analysis regarding appropriate weight change efforts showed differences according to gender, perceived economic status, mother's educational level, and family affluence scale. Conclusion: Appropriate body weight perception and change management plans are needed for Korean adolescents. In addition, active weight change programs have to be established in the adolescents' living environments, such as schools.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.4 no.4
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• pp.554-560
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• 1999

This study was conducted to find adolescent females perception of body image. The survey was carried out by self-questionnaires with 463 female school and college students in Daegu. Analysis of data was done using t-test, and ANOVA with the SAS computer program. The average height, weight and BMI of the subjects were 161.2cm, 53.4kg and 20.51kg/$m^2$. It appeared that 33.3% of the subjects were off the normal range of body weight ; in particular 25.1% of the subjects were under weight. While the subjects’perception of their own current body image was not distorted, they were dissatisfied with their body image because they wanted a very thin figure. Subjects were divided into 3 groups -underweight, normal weight, overweight-according to their current body size. Their perceptions of ideal and desired figures differed significantly between the groups, but they thought a thinner figure than normal body image as ideal and desired body image even in overweight group. As a result, dissatisfaction of body image in the overweight group was significantly larger than the normal-weight group, and that of the normal-weight group was larger than the underweight group. Percentages of weight control attempt were 51.7% and 64.7% in the normal weight and underweight subjects, respectively. Subjects were divided into 2 groups according to their weight control experience : those who have attempted, and who have not attempted. Weight control attemptees had a higher level of dissatisfaction with their body image than non-attemptees, both because weight control attemptees were fatter, and they perceived a thinner figure as an ideal and as a desired body image thin non-attemptees. From the results of this study, we confirmed that one of reasons of excessive weight control behavior among adolescent females was distorted perception about ideal body image.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.107-113
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• 2008

This study was done to investigate the relationship between the perception of body image, body weight satisfaction or dietary behavior and self-rated health status in Korean college students. Subjects, 285 college students, were divided into three groups (healthy, normal, and unhealthy) according to the answer for the self-rated health question. Information about demographic status, self-rated health condition, height and weight, perception of body image, satisfaction of body weight, concern for body weight control, dietary behavior, nutritional knowledge, and health-related characteristics collected by a self-reported questionnaire. The proportion of men and women in each group was not significantly different. The academic year, major, experience of nutritional education, and type of residence were not significantly related with self-rated health but the pocket money range was significantly associated (p<0.05) with self-rated health. The proportion of subjects rated their health as unhealthy was the lowest in 210-300 thousand won pocket money range and was increased in less than 210 thousand won or over 300 thousand won pocket money ranges. There were no significant differences for age, height, weight and BMI between the groups. The body image perception and body weight satisfaction levels of healthy group was significantly higher than those of unhealthy group (p<0.01 and p<0.001, respectively), but the level of concern for body weigh1 control in healthy subjects was significantly lower than that in unhealthy subjects (p<0.05). The proportion of subjects reported as healthy was significantly increased with increased frequencies of following food behaviors; weekly use of protein foods (p<0.01), vegetables (p<0.05) and dairy products (p<0.01), and food habits such as "regularity of meal time" (p<0.01), "eating in moderation" (p<0.05), and "eating breakfast" (p<0.001). Overall results suggested that the college students have tended to have a better perception of health when they have better body image perception, body weight satisfaction and dietary behaviors.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.403-409
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• 2008

Recently, the desire for low body weight, which is an abnormal weight construct along with obesity, has become an evident and serious problem in teenagers. In Korea, the desire for low weight is not perceived as an important problem, but it is rapidly expanding relative to the physical changes and developmental issues teenagers experience. The social atmosphere presented through mass media is the key influencer for the increasing low weight occurrence in teenagers. Because thoughts about beauty have changed among people, and since there is apparent blind interest in slim body shape and appearance, already low-weight individuals are attempting to lose weight along with obese persons. Thus, we consider it necessary to guide teenagers toward having correct perceptions with regard to weight and their own body shape, and that a healthy and appropriate weight is beautiful. Therefore, for this study, we investigated body perception, abnormal weight, attitude toward weight control, and factors related to eating behavior among teenage girls, who are considered the at risk group for overt body weight control behavior. Based on this, we have attempted to set in motion a systematic and active nutrition education program that will allow us to increase body satisfaction by educating on nutritional issues related to development, and ultimately, implant healthy body shape perceptions.