Desire to lose weight, dietary intake and psychological correlates among middle-aged and older women. The CoLaus study.
Body dissatisfaction has been regularly associated with negative consequences on health of young women, but less is known regarding middle-aged or older women. However, body dissatisfaction in women has been seen for long as a "normative discontent" (i.e. widespread and chronic dissatisfaction) because of its high prevalence among all age categories. The goal of this study was to explore the relationships between the desire to lose weight, energy intake and psychological health in community-dwelling women issued from the second wave (cross-sectional data) of the cohort study CoLaus (2009-2012, Switzerland), taking age categories (40-59 and 60-80) and body mass index (BMI, normal and overweight/obese) into account. Results showed that the desire to lose weight was common even in women with normal BMI and whatever the age category. Women with normal BMI who wished to lose weight reported lower energy and protein intake per kg of body weight, more signs of depression and less satisfaction with their quality of life than those who did not wish to lose weight in both age groups. The desire to lose weight was similarly associated with psychological health in women with overweight/obesity, in both age categories as well. These results indicate that the desire to lose weight may be associated with an impaired psychological health also in middle-aged and older women, even in those with normal BMI. This should not be considered as normal by health care professionals but as a possible indicator of psychological health and of the capacity to comply with dietary recommendations.
['Carrard|I|I|', 'Kruseman|M|M|', 'Marques-Vidal|P|P|']
D000328:Adult D000375:Aging D001828:Body Image D015992:Body Mass Index D004032:Diet D005260:Female D006801:Humans D008603:Mental Health D008875:Middle Aged D009765:Obesity D011446:Prospective Studies D011788:Quality of Life D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires D013557:Switzerland D015431:Weight Loss
Aging Energy intake Body weight Depression Quality of life Caloric restriction Diet Women's health