The Effects of Sexual Orientation on Body Image and Attitudes About Eating and Weight

Owens, Linda; Hughes, Tonda L.; Owens-Nicholson, Dawn

doi:10.1300/j155v07n01_02

Cited by 93 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…For example, lesbians are less likely than heterosexual women to adhere to traditional female gender-role norms and more likely to drink alcohol (Hughes, 2005; Hughes and Wilsnack, 1997)—factors that may increase risk for smoking. Conversely, lesbians tend to be more highly educated, in part because of fewer family roles and responsibilities (Rothblum and Factor, 2001), and they appear to be less influenced by societal pressures to be thin (Herzog, Newman, Yeh, and Warshaw, 1992; Owen, Hughes, and Owens-Nicholson, 2003; Siever, 1994)—factors associated with lower risk of smoking among women. Although interesting and potentially important, until population-based studies that include large samples of lesbians are more feasible, the above hypotheses will remain untested and the question of whether lesbians are more likely than heterosexual women to smoke will remain unanswered.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the high level of agreement between our categorization of participants in the Chicago sample as lesbian, bisexual, or heterosexual and their self-identity suggests that misclassification bias using this method is likely modest (Hughes, Haas, and Avery, 1997). We use the terms lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual to be consistent with terms and definitions used in previous reports of the MWHS findings (e.g., Hughes, Haas, Razzano, Cassidy, and Matthews, 2000; Matthews, Brandenburg, and Hughes, 2004; Matthews et al, 2002; Matthews and Hughes, 2001; Matthews, Hughes, Osterman, and Kodl, 2005; Owen, Hughes, and Owens-Nicholson, 2003), and for ease of communication.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sexual Orientation and Smoking: Results From a Multisite Women's Health Study

Hughes

Johnson

Matthews

2008

Substance Use & Misuse

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Although lesbians are believed to be at disproportionately high risk for smoking, few published studies have focused on smoking rates in this population. We examined and compared rates and demographic correlates of smoking among 550 lesbians and 279 heterosexual women in Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and in New York City in 1994-1996 using a self-administered survey questionnaire. African-American lesbians were more likely than African-American heterosexual women or White lesbians to be current smokers. For the sample as a whole, education was the most robust predictor of both current and lifetime smoking. Racial/ethnic minority lesbians with high school education or less were most likely to report both current and lifetime cigarette smoking. The study's limitations are noted.Keywords sexual orientation; sexual minority; lesbian; sexual identity; sexual attraction; cigarette smoking Over the past several decades, cigarette smoking has become recognized as a health risk of major proportions and the single most preventable cause of premature death in the United States. Nearly one in five deaths in the United States result from the use of tobacco-more each year than AIDS, alcohol, cocaine, heroin, homicide, suicide, motor vehicle crashes, and fires combined (United States Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2000). In addition, smoking is associated with increased risk for health problems specific to women, including cervical cancer, early onset of menopause, infertility, and osteoporosis (USDHHS, 2001). In 1987 lung cancer surpassed breast cancer as the leading cause of cancer mortality in women (Jemal et al., 2003). Given the seriousness of the problem as well as research indicating that smoking rates are declining more slowly for women than for men (Carpenter,Wayne, and Connolly, 2005;Fiore et al., 1989;Molarius et al., 2001), it is important to learn as much as possible about groups of women who may be at heightened risk for smoking.Smoking rates among women are known to differ by socioeconomic status, education, age, and race/ethnicity (USDHHS, 2001). Women with less than a high school (12 years) education are three times as likely to smoke as those with 16 or more years of education. Racial/ethnic differences in smoking rates among woman also vary substantially, with the highest rates among Native Americans and lowest among Hispanics and Asian/Pacific Islanders. Despite , 2003;Ryan, Wortley, Easton, Pederson, and Greenwood, 2001; USDHHS, 2000 USDHHS, , 2001; several recent studies report substantially higher rates of smoking among lesbians and gay men (Burgard, Cochran, and Mays, 2005;Case et al., 2004;Cochran et al., 2001;Greenwood et al., 2005;Mays, Yancey, Cochran, Weber, and Fielding, 2002;Tang et al., 2004;Valanis et al., 2000) than among their heterosexual counterparts. Nevertheless, an Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on lesbian health notes large gaps in current knowledge about smoking among lesbians (Solarz, 1999). In our review of the literature we found only three studie...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual Orientation and Smoking: Results From a Multisite Women's Health Study

Hughes

Johnson

Matthews

2008

Substance Use & Misuse

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Some studies report no difference in eating disorder prevalence between heterosexual women and sexual minority women (Feldman & Meyer, 2007;Yean et al, 2013), whereas others report that lesbians are less likely to have symptoms of disordered eating (Owens, Hughes, Owens-Nicholson, 2003;Siever, 1994). However, a study of youth in Norway showed that same-sex experiences are related to more symptoms of bulimia (Wichstrøm, 2006) and recent data from U.S. youth show LGB identification was associated with higher odds of purging and diet pill use (Austin, Nelson, Birkett, Calzo, & Everett, 2013;Rosario et al, 2014).…”

Section: Eating Disordersmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Ecological Framework for Sexual Minority Women’s Health: Factors Associated With Greater Body Mass

Eliason

Fogel

2015

Journal of Homosexuality

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In recent years, many studies have focused on the body of sexual minority women, particularly emphasizing their larger size. These studies rarely offer theoretically based explanations for the increased weight, nor study the potential consequences (or lack thereof) of being heavier. This article provides a brief overview of the multitude of factors that might cause or contribute to larger size of sexual minority women, using an ecological framework that elucidates upstream social determinants of health as well as individual risk factors. This model is infused with a minority stress model, which hypothesizes excess strain resulting from the stigma associated with oppressed minority identities such as woman, lesbian, bisexual, woman of color, and others. We argue that lack of attention to the upstream social determinants of health may result in individual-level victim blaming and interventions that do not address the root causes of minority stress or increased weight.

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“…For example, Share and Mintz (2002) found that lesbian women had significantly higher levels of body esteem than heterosexual women. Similarly, Owens et al (2002) reported that lesbian women had more positive body image and fewer negative attitudes about weight and eating compared to heterosexual women. Conversely, Beren et al (1996) found that lesbian and heterosexual women's body dissatisfaction did not differ significantly.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Research comparing body images of lesbian and heterosexual women are inconsistent; some researchers report significant differences in body image (Owens, Hughes, & Owens-Nicholson, 2002;Share & Mintz, 2002) whereas others report null findings (Beren, Hayden, Wilfley, & Grilo, 1996). For example, Share and Mintz (2002) found that lesbian women had significantly higher levels of body esteem than heterosexual women.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does Women's Body Appreciation Differ by Sexual Orientation? A Brief Report

Winter

Satinsky

2015

Journal of Bisexuality

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Sexual minority identification may affect women's experiences of body image; however, existing research has solely compared lesbian and heterosexual women. The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine differences in body appreciation among women who identify as heterosexual, bisexual, and other sexual minorities were found. Findings from analysis of covariance revealed significant differences in body appreciation between sexual minority and heterosexual women while controlling for demographic characteristics, and no significant differences in body appreciation between bisexual women and other sexual minority women were found. Findings suggest body appreciation may be affected by sexual orientation, but further research with more diverse samples is warranted.

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The Effects of Sexual Orientation on Body Image and Attitudes About Eating and Weight

Cited by 93 publications

References 24 publications

Sexual Orientation and Smoking: Results From a Multisite Women's Health Study

Sexual Orientation and Smoking: Results From a Multisite Women's Health Study

An Ecological Framework for Sexual Minority Women’s Health: Factors Associated With Greater Body Mass

Does Women's Body Appreciation Differ by Sexual Orientation? A Brief Report

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