Weight misperception and disordered weight control behaviors among U.S. high school students with overweight and obesity: Associations and trends, 1999-2013

- Prevalence of weight misperception remained stable from 1999 to 2013.
- Prevalence of fasting and purging to control weight was stable from 1999 to 2013.
- Use of diet pills to lose weight declined from 1999 to 2013.
- Weight misperception predicted lower use of disordered weight control behaviors.
- These protective associations remained relatively stable between 1999 and 2013.

ObjectiveTo examine prevalence of weight misperception (incongruence between one's perceived weight status and one's actual weight status) and disordered weight control behaviors (DWCBs; unhealthy behaviors aiming to control or modify weight), associations between weight misperception and DWCBs, and temporal trends in prevalence and associations among adolescents with overweight and obesity from 1999 to 2013.MethodsSelf-reported data from eight biennial cycles (1999-2013) of the cross-sectional national Youth Risk Behavior Survey were used in analyses restricted to respondents with overweight/obesity. Data on weight status perception, use of fasting, purging, and diet pills to control weight, sex, race/ethnicity, and grade in school were used in multivariate logistic regression models.ResultsAmong U.S. high school students with overweight and obesity, no linear temporal trends were detected for prevalence of weight misperception, fasting, or purging between 1999 and 2013, while a significant linear decrease was observed for prevalence of diet pill use between 1999 and 2013 (b = − 0.81, p < 0.01). Using data pooled across 1999-2013, weight misperception predicted lower use of all DWCBs examined in this study among females and lower use of fasting to control weight among males. No significant changes over time in associations of weight misperception with fasting or purging were observed, though the association between weight misperception and diet pill use weakened somewhat across 1999-2013.DiscussionIn the context of increasing prevalence of overweight and obesity, weight misperception appears to be a robust protective factor for DWCBs.