Perception of weight status in childhood or adolescence and body size evaluation as an adult

Overweight and obesity in children and adolescence has dramatically increased in recent years in the United States (Deckelbaum & Williams, 2001). There are a number of health problems associated with excess weight and obesity, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and elevated insulin levels. Type 2 diabetes is now the dominant form of diabetes in children and adolescence in the U.S (Deckelbaum & Williams). Overweight and obese individuals also suffer from bias and discrimination from others, and are often teased and rejected by peers (Puhl & Brownell, 2001; Rieves & Cash, 1996). Pressure to meet the cultural standards of acceptable appearance can come from many sources including, family, relationship partners, friends, peers and media (Field et al., 2006). Western societies emphasize thinness as a standard of beauty for women and a large muscular physique as a standard of attractiveness for men (Cohn & Adler, 1992; Drewnowski & Yee, 1987). Understanding how youth weight status affects adult perception of body size has important implications for understanding body image formation. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between perception of childhood weight status and current adult body size. The primary hypothesis was that perception of excess weight in childhood or adolescence leads to distorted evaluation of current body size in adulthood.;A weight questionnaire, developed specifically for this study, was distributed to college students and was used to obtain demographic information, self-reported height and weight (converted to BMI), and categorization of current body size, as well as categorization of past body weight. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was used to determine factors associated with discrepancies between self-reported BMI and current perceived body size classification. The results suggest that there is a relationship between perception of weight status in childhood or adolescence and an individual's current categorization of body size. The perception or recollection of excess weight in childhood or adolescence may distort the evaluation of current body size. Perceived overweight in youth appears to influence later body size perception. Limitations, recommendations for future research, and clinical implications are discussed.