Suddenly Big Susan
Young Women Unknowingly Gain Weight, Have Serious Health Consequences
During a six-month interval, almost one third of the women surveyed did not recognize that they had gained between 4.5 and 8.8 pounds. While surprising, watching 10 minutes of “I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant” puts these figures in a whole lot better perspective, no?
The group surveyed included Hispanic women, non-Hispanic white women and non-Hispanic black women; these women were either users of DMPA (the birth control shot), the pill, or non-hormonal contraception. (The women surveyed had an average age of 25.)
The researchers found that women most likely to detect their weight gain were black women and women using the birth control shot, DMPA. Apparently the rest of us were too busy watching “I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant” to pay attention to the potbelly we were developing.
"We were surprised to find that race and ethnicity are determinants of accurate recognition of weight gain, predictors that have never before been reported," said lead author Dr. Mahbubur Rahman, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., M.P.H. Though he noted that another study was needed to understand the correlation between race and recognizing weight gain, he speculated that DMPA users may be more weight conscious because weight gain is a commonly-known side effect of the shot.
Failing to notice weight gain puts women at risk for cardiovascular disease and other obesity-related afflictions. To get around this, Dr. Rahman suggests women weigh themselves regularly so that they can be aware of significant changes. It also wouldn’t hurt to designate a pair of jeans “Mexican Food Eating Jeans” and keep them handy: If they’re snug after you just woke up, it’s time to hit that awful boot camp class you always talk about going to again.
Source: University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (2012). Young women unknowingly pack on the pounds. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120110173457.htm
"We were surprised to find that race and ethnicity are determinants of accurate recognition of weight gain, predictors that have never before been reported," said lead author Dr. Mahbubur Rahman, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., M.P.H. Though he noted that another study was needed to understand the correlation between race and recognizing weight gain, he speculated that DMPA users may be more weight conscious because weight gain is a commonly-known side effect of the shot.
Failing to notice weight gain puts women at risk for cardiovascular disease and other obesity-related afflictions. To get around this, Dr. Rahman suggests women weigh themselves regularly so that they can be aware of significant changes. It also wouldn’t hurt to designate a pair of jeans “Mexican Food Eating Jeans” and keep them handy: If they’re snug after you just woke up, it’s time to hit that awful boot camp class you always talk about going to again.
Source: University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (2012). Young women unknowingly pack on the pounds. ScienceDaily. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120110173457.htm
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Published 6/29/2012
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