Rising BMI's in the Culture of Thin

Originally posted 01/31/18

While our culture and media often present an unrealistic body image with the Photoshop slimming controversies over the last several years, our culture has also become heavier over the last several decades. As the culture of fashion, beauty and glamor have contributed to unhealthy expectations of being thin to the point of increased risks for eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia, our culture of instant gratification, luxury, low cost calorie dense foods and growing portion sizes have contributed to our increasing weight gains over the past few decades. Over two-thirds of Americans are overweight per body mass index (BMI) greater than 25, with half of those overweight being obese per BMI of 30 or greater (Johnson, Bluestein, Dasilva, Moubray, Orton, Balagaye, Paredes, & Kim, 2015, p. 125).

Johnson, W., Bluestein, B., Dasilva, F., Moubray, N., Orton, M., Balagaye, H., Paredes, K., & Kim, M. (2015). Perceptions of overweight in US and global cultures. Eating Behaviors, 17, 125-129. doi: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2015.01.015