Body shape concerns in Portuguese university students

Abstract

Many current models of beauty in developed countries represent extreme thinness in women and a muscular body in men. The body image perception will condition the search for ideal beauty through different behaviors and can be transformed into eating disorders. The university students, with the changes typical of youth and university transition, are a vulnerable group. The purpose of this analysis was to evaluate the concerns about body shape in university students from the Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias. The study included 163 students, of whom 100 were women, with a mean age of 21.71 (SD=3.80) years. 81% of men presented no body shape concerns, 17.50% showed mild, 1.60% moderate and 0% intense preoccupation. In comparison, 59% of women presented no level of body shape concerns, 27% showed a mild, 10% moderate, and 4% intense body shape preoccupation. The odds ratio of presenting concerns about body shape were significantly related to being of female gender. There were more cases of preoccupation about body shape in women, regardless of age, academic course, or adherence to the Mediterranean diet.