Percepción, información, creencias y actitudes de la población femenina sobre la salud general, el cuidado del cuerpo, la alimentación y las dietas de adelgazamiento: resultados de una encuesta telefónica

Introduction

There is a lack of data on how information, attitudes, perceptions and personal beliefs can affect eating behaviour.

Objective

To obtain data on the perception, information, beliefs and attitudes of the female population on general health, caring for the body, food and slimming diets through a telephone survey.

Methods

An observational and epidemiological transversal study carried out through a unique telephone interview, assisted by a computer (Computer Aided Telephone Interviewing [CATI]), done on a random sample of the female population from all over Spain. The survey had 36 questions drawn up jointly by the Revision, Study and Positioning Group of the Spanish Association of Dieticians-Nutritionists (GREP-AEDN) and the Department of Nutrition and Regulations of the company Danone S.A., and aimed at obtaining data on this population's perception, information, beliefs and attitudes on general health, caring for the body, food and slimming diets. The women surveyed answered the questionnaire voluntarily, and in no case was the truth of the replies they offered checked (even those that may seem objective).

Results

3,012 telephone surveys were done on women from all the autonomous regions. It is seen that, as the age of the population increases, the amount of overweight and obesity increases, and the highest rate of weight below normal is found in the younger population. Although 80% of the women say that they are happy with their weight, as the overweight increases, the tendency to “resign themselves” and “to be concerned” about their weight increases. Although most of the women surveyed, regardless of their age, state that they take care of themselves for health reasons, the younger and slimmer the woman is, the more she tends to take care of herself for aesthetic reasons. Physical exercise and a balanced diet are the strategies that are reported most for taking care of health and for reducing weight. Also, 8 out of every 10 women agree that less fat should be eaten and 6 out of every 10 agree that a low-calorie diet should be followed. More than 10% of the population believes that it may have a nutritional deficit, 50% believes that nutrients are lost when a low-calorie diet is followed and, as the age and the BMI increase, the tendency to think that there may be a nutritional deficit increases. The data were analysed using the SAS 9.1.3 statistical package.

Conclusions

There is a relation between self-perception, information or social beliefs about food and health, and the attitude or individual eating behaviour. The study of these relationships can help health professionals make better decisions affecting the public health field.