Journal de la nutrition et des sciences alimentaires
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Perception of Body Image in Maya Adolescents and its Relationship with Body Dissatisfaction and Nutritional Status

Reyna Maria Cruz-Bojorquez, Fibi Yenisie Coop-Gamas, Sergio Cardenas-Garcia and Maria Luisa Avila-Escalante

Body image is formed in childhood and adolescence and is influenced by socio-cultural situations and interpersonal relationships during life. When the characteristics of a subject's body do not correspond with the social models of beauty promoted by the media, body dissatisfaction (BD) appears, which is the set of negative emotions, thoughts, and attitudes towards the size and shape of one’s body.

The objective of the present study is to know the body image perception (BIP) of Mayan adolescents and their relationship with body dissatisfaction and its nutritional status through the Body Mass Index (BMI) indicator. The population was of 292 students of the three grades of four secondary schools of the Municipality of Abalá, Yucatán, between the ages of 12 and 17, from which 50.7% were men. The Body Image Perception analysis, the Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ) and the BMI were used. It was found that 38.9% of the population had BIP in disagreement with their BMI, with a higher prevalence in under-estimation in the overweight and obese population, even though 16.7% of the population had body mass index in obesity. Only 18.2% had BD being higher in women (11.7%) between the ages 13 and 14, with a higher prevalence in those with normal BMI and BIP, which shows that the influence of social pressure towards body figure does not necessarily affect people who are overweight.