• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
• /
• v.18 no.3
• /
• pp.163-175
• /
• 2001

The purpose of this study is to collect fundamental data for weight control education based on obesity, weight control practices and body image in female college students. Those surveyed were 364 female college students attending universities in Seoul, Kyoung-Gi and Chung Cheung Buk Do. The data were collected from June 1, 1999 to September 10, 1999. The resulting data are as follows: 1. The mean BMI of the female college students was 19.78:t1.87kg/$\textrm{m}^2$, which comes within the range of normal weight. Underweight, normal weight and overweight students were respectively 27.2%, 66.8% and 5.5%. As many as 7.1% of the underweight students and 42.8% of the normal weight students described themselves as being "fatty". 2. Of these subjects, 83.5% reported wanting to lose weight, and the primary reason of weight control was to improve their appearance. The mean weight that they wanted to lose was 5.2$\pm$2.7kg, and 68.7% of the respondents had tried to lose weight. Among them, the most frequently reported weight control behavior was dieting followed by exercise, 30% reported fasting, 3.6% reported using drugs, 4.4% reported smoking and 3.6% reported vomiting. As to the weight loss effect, 96.7% of the subjects used behavior modification, 82.5% of the students exercised, and 76.1% of the dieters reported they had lost weight. 3. As to body image, many female college students were dissatisfied with their body figures, especially thighs(70.3%), hips(60.4%), abdomens(60.2%), and weight(55.2%). The body image of the students that perceived themselves as "fatty" was the lowest. 4. There were significant differences in the mean weight that they wanted to lose and the weight control attempts according to weight perception. Those that perceived themselves as "fatty" wanted to lose more weight, and had more weight control experiences. In conclusion, attempts at weight control are common in the female college students and many students appear to be dissatisfied with their body shapes. It is important to educate about healthy weight control methods and raise their awareness of the positive body image.ss of the positive body image.

• Journal of Korean Home Economics Education Association
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.101-111
• /
• 2001

The purpose of the study is to investigate the relationships between the BMI and food preference. eating behaviors. and nutrition knowledge score among the middle school male and female students. A total of 394 students from 4 different middle school in Seoul were participated in this study. The students were categorized into 3 groups by BMI : under-weight(〈20). ideal(20$\leq$BMI〈25). and overweight($\geq$25) groups. The data on food preference. eating behavior. and nutrition knowledge were collected by a questionnaire. All data were analyzed by means as frequency. percentage. mean and standard deviation. F-test. $\chi$$^2$-test. and correlation analysis. The results obtained are summarized as follows : 1. BMI average of the male students was 21.4 About 45% of the students were in ideal weight group. 40% were in under-weight group. and 15% were in overweight group according to BMI. 2. About 62% of the participants wanted to lose weight : 43% of the male students. and 82% of the female students. And 33% of the students wished to lose more than 7kg of body weight. 3. Preference score for animal protein foods was the highest in overweight group. On the other hand. preference score of vegetables was the highest in under-weight group. 4. All 3 BMI groups eat more foods on dinner compared to lunch or breakfast. Eating amount score of between-meal was highest(eat more) in under-weight group. and the lowest(eat less) in overweight group. But the percentage of students who eat snack at night was the highest in overweight group. 5. Among the eating behavior variables. eating frequency of snack at night and eating speed were significantly different among 3 groups. Overweight group eat snack at night less frequently and eating speed is faster than the other groups(p〈.05). 6. Nutrition knowledge score was the highest in overweight group. but the difference was insignificant. It is shown that about 40% of the participants belong to under-weight group. but 62% wished to lose weights. Parents and teachers should watch out the juvenile students'health. especially whether they try to lose weight or maintain unrealistically low weight.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
• /
• v.28 no.2
• /
• pp.258-268
• /
• 2015

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of fad dieting as a method to lose weight among male and female college students. A total of 710 students participated in this study. Fad dieting was surveyed using a questionnaire about 11 fad diet methods. The mean age of the subjects was 21.4 years for males and 20.4 years for females. The proportion of students who had experience trying to lose weight was 52.8% for males and 78.6% for females (p<0.001). The diet method employed by the highest number of participants was the half meal diet (27.6% for males, 43.9% for females), followed by the cereal diet (8.8% for males, 43.9% for females), fasting (9.9% for males, 21.4% for females), and the chicken breast diet (13.1% for males, 9.2% for females). The female students were more likely than the males to try fad diets other than the chicken breast diet and the Atkins diet. The most frequent side effect of fad dieting was the yo-yo effect, followed by binge eating, weakness, anemia, and so on. The proportion of students who indicated that nutrition education is needed for healthy dieting was 39.1% for males and 45.4% for females. From these results, we concluded that a high percentage of college students attempt to lose weight through fad diets, with some gender differences. Therefore, in the future, nutrition education programs should focus more attention on providing healthy dieting methods to young college students to help them lose weight.

• Nutritional Sciences
• /
• v.6 no.3
• /
• pp.167-172
• /
• 2003

This study explored the eating attitudes, dieting habits, weight perception and exercise behavior of Korean women. Self-reported questionnaires were administered to 724 Korean college students. Compared to males, female students felt themselves overweight and dissatisfied with their body and desired to lose weight although both groups were within the range of the national standard. Female students dieted more, while males exercised more. Eighteen percent of females showed disturbed eating behavior. The score for disturbed eating behavior was highly related to weight perception in the female students. These results suggest that Korean college women have a high prevalence of eating disturbances without having actual weight problems. A majority of the women desired to lose weight which may be due to the misperception of their body weight and fatness. However, they did not adopt appropriate strategies such as doing regular exercise to reduce their body weight.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.37 no.5
• /
• pp.571-577
• /
• 2008

Among current health-related problems, the issue of over-weight is considered one of the most important, fostering a national interest in body weight loss. In this study, an awareness of one's current body weight and previous experiences of body weight loss were analyzed according to age and gender. The subjects of the study were 720 people (male: 360 and female: 360) aged $10{\sim}60$ years with previous experiences of attempting to lose weight 1 year prior to this study. Anthropometrics, general characteristics, awareness of one’s current body weight, and the body weight loss practice were analyzed through a questionnaire. Approximately 73.2% of the subjects recognized themselves as obese, and 83.5% wished to lose weight. The older the subjects were, the frequency of attempting to lose weight was lower, and those who succeeded in losing weight maintained their reduced body weight for a longer period. Compared to male subjects, more female reported attempts of losing weight, but the period of maintaining their reduced weight was shorter. The older subjects reported a higher satisfaction rate of the weight loss methods they used, and few of them gained back the weight they lost. This phenomenon was especially more stronger among male than female subjects. From our studies, it may be concluded that attitudes concerning a person’s current body weight and body weight loss practice vary according to age and gender.

• Nutritional Sciences
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.241-246
• /
• 2004

This study investigated the influence of weight perception on weight management strategies including diet and exercise in Korean female adolescents. Junior (J) and senior (S) high school girls were divided in two groups; those who had $\leq$100% (BI) and > 100% (AI) of ideal weight (J-BI, n=376, 14.8 yr, 46.1 kg; J-AI, 11=128, 15.0 yr, 57.4 kg; S-BI, n=325, 17.4 yr, 50.1 kg; and S-AI, n=133, 17.5 yr, 58.2 kg, mean values). Questionnaires to assess weight perception, desire to lose weight, body image, eating behavior, weight control strategies and physical activity (PPA) were administered J-AI(9.4 kg) and S-AI(9.8 kg) desired to lose weight more than J-BI(2.5 kg) and S-BI(3.6 kg), respectively (p < 0.001). 85% of J-AI and 93% of S-AI perceived their weight being above average and 23% of J-BI and 34% of S-BI responded similarly (p < 0.001). Body dissatisfaction index (BDI) and eating attitude (EAT26) scores were lower in J-BI(9.7, 12.0) vs. J-AI(16.4, 14.7) and S-BI(12.4, 12.4) vs. S-AI(19.5, 15.4) (p < 0.001). However, PPA was not different for J-BI vs. J-AI, and S-BI vs. S-AL Only 17, 18, 9, and 15% of J.BI, J.AI, S-BI, and S-AI, respectively, exercised regularly. PPA and BDI were only slightly correlated in J-BI(r=0.194, p < 0.005) and S-BI(r=0.220, p < 0.005). Even that the majority of Korean female adolescents perceived they were heavy and desired to lose weight, appropriate exercise and physical activities were not practiced.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.1-10
• /
• 1994

This study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between body mass index and the food habits of college students. For this purpose, 1030 students of Seoul National University were asked to fill out the questionnaires for the food habit and weight control. Actual weights were also measured, on the spot. The results obtained were as follows. 1. Average height and weight were 173.15 cm, 63.83 kg for male, and 160.52 cm, 52.73 kg for females. The prevalence of underweight, normal and overweight was 32.3, 61.7, 5.5%, respectively. 2. Food habit scores of obese females were lower than normal or underweight females. Male subjects did not show significantly different scores among three groups. 3. Female obese subjects have lower scores than the other groups on the balanced intake of five basic food groups and on the regular meal intakes. Male obese subjects have cholesterol-rich food and animal fat more frequently than normal and underweight males. Male underweight subjects have lower food habit scores on the balanced intake of five basic food groups. 4. Males want to gain weight slightly and females want to lose 4.65 kg weight. All females want to lose weights. Obese males and females want to lose 10 kg weights.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
• /
• v.28 no.4
• /
• pp.359-365
• /
• 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 Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.31 no.2 s.61
• /
• pp.199-214
• /
• 1998

This study was undertaken to explain weight control behavior and intention of obese children and adolescents as measured by the elements of the health belief model. A total of 732 obese students from 28 schools in Seoul metropolitan area and their mothers were assessed with a self-administered questionnaire. The analyzed results are as follows; 1. Among obese students, 45.3% of male students and 57.2% of female students, a significantly higher portion than male students, reported that they had tried to lose weight within the recent year. Exercise was the most frequently used method to lose weight followed by diet control, drug use, and specialized clinic visits, in descending order. 2. Male students were more likely to try to lose weight if they perceived a low threat level and their mother had a job, and female students were more likely to try to lose weight if they were younger in age, perceived a low threat level and had strong external motivating factors. 3. Female students showed a significantly higher level of intention to obesity control than male students, and the intention level of their mothers also showed the same trend. 4. In male students, the degree of weight dissatisfaction, weight control experience, the level of obesity related beliefs of students, the educational level of the mother and economic status of the family were significant predictors of intention to obesity control, and in females, age, the level of obesity related beliefs of students and intention of their mothers were significant. In the mothers of male students, obesity index of students, age of the mother and the level of obesity related beliefs of the mother were significant predictors of intention of the mother, and in the mothers of female students, obesity index of students, occupational status of the mother and obesity related beliefs of the mother were significant. 5. According to the path model of intention to obesity control, the degree of weight dissatisfaction had the most powerful effect in male students, and perceived net benefit level was the most important variable in female students. Since the weight control behavior and intention of obese students were more predictable by the degree of weight dissatisfaction than the obesity index, we can conclude that only the students dissatisfied with their weight are well motivated for obesity control. There can be a discrepancy between the mother and her child's beliefs and intention status(especially in male students), so the therapists should also assess the student's opinion as well as the mother's. In female students, the perceived net benefit level wag the most important predictor of intention to obesity control, therefore the intervention program should pay particular attention to the positive benefits of weight control rather than negative aspects(threats) of obesity.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.13-24
• /
• 2001

The purpose of this study was to set up an effective marketing strategy targeting college women by researching the relationship between weight control behavior and satisfaction with fit of apparel. The results showed that 1) 85.5% of the college women participated in weight control behavior, and 53.5% of them wanted to lose more than 3kg of their weight, 2) both body cathexis and fit satisfaction of college women were generally low. College women were less satisfied with their body and fit of apparel according to the increase of weight control degree. The weight control parts and unsatisfied body parts were almost matched : thigh, abdomen, hip, calf, and weight. The unsatisfied fit of apparel parts were also found to be thigh, hip, abdomen, crotch, pant length that matched each parts, 3) fit satisfaction of neckline, shoulder, midriff, hip, crotch, thigh, calf, and skirt length decreased according to the increase of weight control degree, and 4) weight control group which wanted to lose weight at neck, shoulder, arm, breast, waist, abdomen, hip, thigh, and calf also had low fit satisfaction of neckline, shoulder, armhole, sleeve, breast, waist, abdomen, midriff, hip, thigh, crotch, calf, and skirt length in clothing.