Factors that influence body image representations of black Muslim women

Research on the body image perceptions of black women is limited. Although previous body image studies have explored the intersection between race and gender, the influence of religion has been neglected. Guided by a grounded theory framework, the focus of this investigation, conducted in Upstate New York, USA, was to examine the role of race and religion in the body image perceptions of 22 African-American Sunni Muslim women. Analysis of individual interviews revealed that, in contrast to using standard medical guidelines, participants' views about their bodies were largely based on positive images of an earlier body size/shape, social and family expectations and contexts, cultural norms and values, and spirituality and religious beliefs. Although the body image perceptions of black Muslim women were similar to those expressed in previous body image studies with black women, participants expressed the importance of highlighting the spiritual versus physical self by adhering to religious guidelines regarding proper dress and appearance. These findings suggest that religion, race, and gender are all important factors to be considered when conducting body image studies with black women.     

Knowledge,attitudes and contraceptive use among Muslim Bedouin women in southern Israel

The Bedouin community in southern Israel is an authentic Muslim population that lives in close proximity to the Jewish population and is covered by the same healthcare services. The main aim of the study was to assess the attitudes, knowledge and practice of contraception among Bedouin women of childbearing age in southern Israel. Additional aims were to compare the attitudes and knowledge among women who did and did not use contraceptives and between younger and older women. A questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was carried out. The study population was comprised of women who visit a primary care clinic in the Bedouin village for any reason. It numbered 270 women with a mean age of 33.2 ± 6.6 years. The mean number of children was 5.0 ± 2.7, 27% were in polygamous marriages and 69% were married to relatives. The most recognized methods of contraception were pills and intrauterine devices (37.7%, each). Fourteen per cent of the women practiced the withdrawal method and 9% used breastfeeding for that purpose. The most common sources of knowledge on contraception were family (62% among uses and 69% among non-users), the media (58% and 50%, respectively) and healthcare providers (25% and 34%, respectively). The most common reasons for not practicing contraception were a desire to become pregnant (59%), fear of adverse effects (44%) and husband's opposition (28%). The desire to become pregnant is the main reason for not practicing contraception among women in the Bedouin community in the Negev. Participation of the husband in counselling, involvement of religious leaders can improve family planning. Education on the low rate of adverse effects and on the many health benefits of contraception can also improve adherence to the practice of contraception.     

Facebook use and negative body image among U.S. college women

Young women increasingly spend time on social media, but the relationship of this exposure to body image is still in the initial stages of exploration. In this study the authors used social comparison theory to examine the relationship between time spent on Facebook and body image. A survey of 881 U.S. college women was conducted in April–May 2013. Findings showed that 10.1% had posted about weight, body image, exercise, or dieting, and 27.4% had commented on friends’ posts or photos. More time on Facebook related to more frequent body and weight comparisons, more attention to the physical appearance of others, and more negative feelings about their bodies for all women. For women who wanted to lose weight, more time on Facebook also related to more disordered eating symptoms.     

Constructions and experiences of sexual health among young,heterosexual, unmarried Muslim women immigrants in Australia

Minority ethnic immigrant women are frequently vulnerable to poor sexual health outcomes, due to poor use of sexual health services, lack of knowledge and social stigma associated with the discussion of sexuality. This paper explores the sexual health accounts provided by a group of young, unmarried heterosexual Muslim women immigrants residing and studying in Sydney, an under-researched group in the Australian context. Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted, focusing on sex before marriage, spouse selection and contraceptive use. Feminist discourse analysis identified ‘purity versus corruption’ as the primary construction of women's sexuality, where women positioned their sexual behaviour as that of purity and uninvolvement or corruption through unwedded participation. The subthemes ‘maintaining ignorance and naivety’, ‘remaining virginal’, ‘sex segregation’ and ‘the fallen woman’ capture women's personal sexuality-related experiences and values within the context of their religious and cultural communities. Additional research with this community is needed to examine the effects of negative social constructions of sex on young sexually active Muslim women, as well as further research on young women's sexual health within immigrant communities.     

Prevalence and correlates of body image dissatisfaction in postmenopausal women

ABSTRACT

Dissatisfaction with one’s body image is widespread and can have serious health consequences; however, research about its prevalence and correlates in older women is limited. We analyzed data from 75,256 women participating in the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study, a longitudinal study of postmenopausal women’s health. Measures used in the study were collected at baseline and/or the third year of follow-up between 1993 and 2002. The majority of participants (83%) in this study were dissatisfied with their bodies because they perceived themselves as heavier than their ideal. Overall, the multiple and significant correlates of body image dissatisfaction explained 36.2% of the variance in the body image dissatisfaction score, with body mass index (BMI) and change in BMI being the two most important contributors to explaining the variance. The results of this study suggest future research should focus on the utility of interventions to reduce dissatisfaction with body image in postmenopausal women that target either maintenance of a lower BMI through diet and exercise, and/or body acceptance. Further, future research should aim to identify factors in addition to body size that drive body image dissatisfaction.     

African-American Muslim Women and Health Care

ABSTRACT

Muslims constitute a growing proportion of the African-American population. This paper explores the health practices, health behaviors, and code of ethics as informed by the Islamic religion within the context of African-American Muslim women's lives. An overview of the history of Islam in the world, and in the U.S., the main Islamic tenets, and the socio-cultural context of African-American Muslim women provides the broad framework for this paper. This information will be helpful in meeting the health needs of African-American Islamic women, within an outreach/community health promotion setting, within a clinical/hospital setting, or within a home care setting.     

Muslim and gay: seeking identity coherence in New Zealand

The process of accepting oneself as gay and of ‘coming out’ to family and friends is well documented. For Muslim men, this is complicated by the tension between their emerging sexual identity and their religious and cultural birth identity, which labels homosexuality as sinful. This paper explores this process in a sample of five gay Muslim men living in New Zealand, a liberal secular society where homosexuality is widely accepted and gay rights are endorsed in legislation. Identity Process Theory drives the analysis, which identifies five themes encapsulating the process of striving for psychological coherence: resistance, acceptance, tension, renegotiation and pretence. Initial phases of denial and anger at their emerging sexuality are strongly linked to the conflict with their religious identity. Later, acceptance of their sexuality as natural and even God-given protects them from blame for their ‘sins’. In contrast to earlier work in the UK, for most men, renegotiation of their Muslim identity is adopted as the key strategy for achieving intrapsychic coherence. However, at an interpersonal level, families remain a source of conflict, temporarily resolved through pretence. Renegotiating religious identity leaves men having to pretend not just to be straight, but also to be strongly religious.     

Body image and sexuality in oophorectomized women

Five groups of women ages 35 to 55 years were studied, including a nonsurgical control group (CTL), a hysterectomy-only (HYS), and three oophorectomy groups: an untreated group (UNT), women on estrogen replacement therapy (EST), and women on androgen-estrogen replacement therapy (COM). The interview/questionnaire session assessed mood, body image, and sexual functioning. In a second session completed by 58 of 129 subjects (45%), a photoplethysmograph measured vaginal blood flow in response to an erotic stimulus while subjects concurrently monitored subjective arousal. Overall, the UNT and EST groups had significantly lower self-reported desire and arousal than the remaining three groups. Body image was significantly poorer in the UNT group. All surgical groups reported more sexual problems than the control group. Furthermore, about a third of the CTL group reported positive changes in body image and sexuality in the previous 5 years. This effect was attenuated in the HYS, COM, and EST groups and almost absent in the UNT group. No significant group differences were obtained, however, on mood or vaginal blood flow and subjective arousal to an erotic stimulus. The role of differential levels of testosterone on sexuality is discussed as well as its clinical implications.This research was conducted as part of the first author's Ph.D. thesis requirement under the direction of the second author at McGill University and was supported by grants from the Medical Research Council of Canada (Studentship), Fonds pour la Formation de Chercheurs et l'Aide à la Recherche, and McGill Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research-Social Science Research Grant. Dr. Bellerose is currently at the Douglas Hospital in Verdun, Quebec.     

Perspectives on induced abortion among Palestinian women: religion,culture and access in the occupied Palestinian territories

Induced abortion is an important public health issue in the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT), where it is illegal in most cases. This study was designed to elicit the views of Palestinian women on induced abortion given the unique religious, ethical and social challenges in the OPT. Sixty Palestinian women were interviewed on their perceptions of the religious implications, social consequences and accessibility of induced abortions in the OPT at Al-Makassed Islamic Charitable Hospital in East Jerusalem. Themes arising from the interviews included: the centrality of religion in affecting women’s choices and views on abortion; the importance of community norms in regulating perspectives on elective abortion; and the impact of the unique medico-legal situation of the OPT on access to abortion under occupation. Limitations to safe abortion access included: legal restrictions; significant social consequences from the discovery of an abortion by one’s community or family; and different levels of access to abortion depending on whether a woman lived in East Jerusalem, the West Bank, or Gaza. This knowledge should be incorporated to work towards a legal and medical framework in Palestine that would allow for safe abortions for women in need.     

多囊卵巢综合征患者身体意象的研究进展

身体意象是影响多囊卵巢综合征（polycystic ovary syndrome,PCOS）患者认知和自我评价的重要因素,对PCOS患者的心理健康、社会交往及生活质量发挥不可忽视的作用。当前国内尚未引起对PCOS患者身体意象的重视和关注,相关研究较为匮乏。本文对PCOS患者身体意象的研究现状、测量工具、危险因素、不良影响及干预策略进行综述,结合PCOS患者身体意象研究进展提出建议,以期提高国内学者对于PCOS患者身体意象的关注,为我国开展相关研究提供参考依据。     

Body image evaluations in obese females with binge eating disorder

Dimensions of body image in a sample of obese women diagnosed with binge eating disorder (BED; N=42) were compared with a sample of obese women without BED (non-BED; N=42), matched on age and BMI. Additionally, the relationship between BED, body image and several dimensions of treatment response was examined. Results indicated BED women were more likely to negatively evaluate their global physical appearance and have less satisfaction with specific areas of the body than were non-BED women, even after controlling for depression scores. While BED women were significantly more likely to endorse depressive symptoms, depression scores were negatively correlated with body satisfaction in non-BED women only. BED women did not fare worse in formal weight-loss treatment, as measured by length of time in treatment, group-therapy attendance, or BMI at posttreatment. The role of body image in women with BED seeking weight-loss treatment is discussed relevant to the context of potential impact of BED and negative body image on active weight-loss treatment and maintenance.     

Body weight perceptions and obesity amongst university employed South African women

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to rigorously assess body weight perceptions according to several body image dimensions in rural, employed African women. One hundred and thirty-two employed black African women were recruited at a rural South African university. Participants were asked to choose their ‘ideal’ and ‘feel’ perceived body size from nine standardized body image silhouettes, varying according to body size. Three body image dimensions of interest were measured, (1) ‘feel’ minus ‘ideal’ index (FID), (2) perceived minus the actual weight status (PAD) index and (3) valorization of stoutness index (participants that chose silhouettes corresponding to overweight/obesity). Using the FID dimension, older obese women had significantly higher desire for leanness, with small effects, compared with lean and younger obese women (p = .001). Those women who correctly perceived body weight (PAD = 0), were mostly obese and older (p < .0001), with moderate effects, than non-obese women. Social valorization of stoutness was observed in 58.3% of the sample, but was higher in older obese women, with small effects, compared with lean women (p = .0001). This study has shown that the majority of the study population demonstrated a social valorization of stoutness, despite a desire to be thinner and the ability to adequately perceive their own body weight in accordance with BMI.     

Body image dissatisfaction and disordered eating in black and white women

OBJECTIVE: This study predicted and found that body image dissatisfaction and bulimic symptoms have a curvilinear relationship among undergraduate women. RESULTS: For the women in this sample, regardless of race, body image dissatisfaction correlated with bulimic symptoms, such that women who perceived themselves as bigger or smaller than the ideal body size for their ethnic group endorsed bulimic symptoms. Black and white women differed regarding their ethnic group's ideal body image and their self-perceptions of how they compared with the ideal image. Black women tended to report being underweight, whereas white women tended to report being overweight. DISCUSSION: The findings in this study suggest that some black women are not buffered against eating disorders as suggested in previous research.     

Binge Eating Disorder and body image perception among university students

Binge Eating Disorder (BED) is characterized by recurrent episodes of compulsive eating, without any compensatory behavior to avoid possible gain weight. Individuals who suffer from eating disorders often show negative self-image.The present paper aimed to assess BED prevalence and self-image disorders among university students in the city of São José do Rio Preto, State of São Paulo, Brazil.The survey had the participation of 217 undergraduates. The following procedures were carried out: a personal data questionnaire, the Binge Eating Scale and a figure scale.In the surveyed population, 12.90% showed BED. Most subjects (86.32%) chose larger figures when compared to their current BMI, overestimating their body size. Furthermore, BED individuals showed higher self-image inadequacy in comparison to people without the disorder.Therefore, this is a public health problem to which undergraduates are exposed; forthcoming studies may be carried out to understand BED and associated commorbidities.