The incidence of dieting amongst adolescent girls: a question of interpretation?

Aim It is the intention of this study establish the extent of dieting pract ices amongst adolescent girls and identify their perceptions regard to 'die ting' and 'healthy eating'. Methods A,total of 140 girls, aged 12-13 years, were recruited two schools. A self-reported questionnaire, which determined the incidence of dieting a nd sought to identify the girls' perceptions 'dieting' and 'healtihy eating ', was used to collect data. Results Out of the total group, 33.6% reported that they had dieted at some time and 15.8% were presently dieting. The most popular definition of diet ing amongst the dieters was 'eating less/cutting down'; however, the second most popular answer was 'eating healthy food' which was the most popular a nswer amongst the non-dieters. The most popular definition of healthy eatin g was 'increasing fruit/veg/salads', which is similar to how many girls per ceived dieting, i.e. eating healthy food (fruit/veg/salads). Conclusion Establishing the actual incidence of dieting amongst adolescent girls is not a clear-cut issue as it can be interpreted in many different w ays, depending on the perceptions of the individual. The results of this st udy showed that in many cases 'dieting' and 'healthy eating' were perceived in a similar light, concluding that the dietary intake of dieters may be s imilar to that of non-dieters with both groups being at risk from any relat ed health problems.