Body dissatisfaction and eating attitudes in slimming and fitness gyms in London and Lahore: a cross-cultural study

A questionnaire survey of women attending slimming and fitness gyms in London and Lahore was conducted using the Body Shape Questionnaire and the Eating Attitudes Test. Twenty-nine South Asian and 40 White women in London and 35 English-speaking women in Lahore were recruited into the study. Similar associations between body mass, body dissatisfaction and eating attitudes were found in all three ethnic groups. Asian women, in London and Lahore, showed a decrease in body dissatisfaction (BSQ scores) with age, suggesting that younger Asian women may have been more affected by increasing 'westernization' of attitudes to body shape. This cross-cultural study provides further evidence of the causal links between body mass, body dissatisfaction and eating attitudes across different ethnic groups. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.