Teen Girls Who Are Frequent Scale-Steppers Often Have more Weight Problems

(December 7, 2006) -- Teenage girls who frequently weighed themselves were more likely than others to resort to unhealthy dieting measures, and some ended up gaining close to twice as much weight, a study found.

The most scale-obsessed girls in the University of Minnesota research were more likely to skip meals, use diet pills or laxatives, smoke, and binge and vomit to lose weight.

"The act of getting on the scale, weighing yourself every day, can lead to an unhealthy weight preoccupation," said lead researcher Dianne Neumark-Sztainer, a professor at the university's School of Public Health. "And teenage girls who are concerned about their weight are at great risk for unhealthy weight control behaviors."

The study - published in this month's issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health - surveyed 2,516 Minnesota junior high and high school girls and boys in the 1998-1999 school year and followed up in 2003-2004.

Close to 10 percent of the girls said at the beginning of the study they strongly agreed with the statement, "I weigh myself often."

When questioned in the follow-up, 92 percent of those girls said they engaged in some kind of unhealthy weight-control behavior, compared to about 68 percent of girls who strongly disagreed that they weighed themselves frequently.

Unhealthy weight-control behavior could be as minor as skipping an occasional meal. Thirty-eight percent of girls who frequently weighed themselves reported engaging in extreme weight-loss behavior.

Neumark-Sztainer said the results probably reflect the girls' underlying concern with weight, but even when they adjusted the results for body satisfaction, they still showed a link between frequent weighing and bad eating behavior.

The junior high girls who reported weighing themselves frequently gained an average of 33.3 pounds (15 kilograms) over five years, compared with just 18.6 pounds (8.4 kilograms) for girls their age who did not weigh in frequently.

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For boys, frequent weigh-ins did not lead to weight gain, the study found. Boys who weighed themselves often were more likely than other boys to take unhealthy measures to control their weight, but the difference was too small to be considered statistically significant.

Source: Associated Press

Last updated: 12/06

Related Information:

• Could You Be Fostering an Eating Disordered Child?
• Helping Your Teen with Weight Management
• How Do Mothers Contribute to Their Daughter's Eating Disorders and Weight Concerns?
• Talking to Your Teen About Eating Disorders: Mother and Daughter
• Young 'Unable to Talk' About Eating Disorders
• Worshipping 'Ana' Eating Disorders Take on a Life of Their Own
• Anorexia Nervosa - The Most Deadly Mental Illness
• What is Body Image and How Do You Improve It
• Know When to Seek Help for Your Child
• Recognizing Eating Disorders in Children
• How Can I Get My Child Started in Treatment
• Where to Find Help for Your Eating Disordered Child?
• Eating Disorders Are Your Problem, Too
• Now You Can Help Your Child Overpower an Eating Disorder
• Parent-to-Parent Tips on Coping With Your Eating Disordered Child
• Helping a Friend with an Eating Disorder - Eating Disorders Center
• Know When to Seek Help for your Child - Eating Disorders
• Teens with Eating Disorders Visit Diet Websites

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