Body image disturbance was viewed as a composite of three aspects. Prior to weight loss, the high disturbance score in Caucasians may be due to them experiencing greater cultural pressure to be thin. The men may have exaggerated their degree of obesity because of less denial of being overweight than women. Following weight loss, disturbance decreased for all groups but remained elevated for those with early onset, possibly because of a persistent self-image from adolescence.

No abstract