Eating disorder risk and body image concerns in visually impaired women TA eImagem corporal em deficientes visuais

Abstract

Visually impaired individuals may have difficulty perceiving their bodies and may develop body image and eating disorders. The main purpose of this original research was to assess body imageconcernsand risk behaviors for eating disorders (ED) in visually impaired women. The Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ), Body Checking Questionnaire (BCQ) and Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26) were used, in addition to determining nutritional status and collecting information on physical exercise, autonomy in the acquisition of supplies and preparation of meals, and the use of social media. Thirty-seven visually impaired women participated in the study, with a mean age of 41.4 ± 13.9 years. It was observed that 78.3% of the participants were overweight, 23.3% had some degree of body image dissatisfaction,and 45.9% hadED risk. Half of the women with low vision had risky behaviors for ED and a mean score on the EAT-26 of 23.1 ± 14.4. In the group with total blindness, direct correlations were observed between the EAT-26 and BCQ (r=0. 542; p=0.013) and BSQ and BCQ (r=0.738; p<0.001) whereas in the low vision group, direct associations were observed between the EAT-26 and BSQ (r=0.581; p=0.018), EAT-26 and BCQ (r=0.643; p=0.007), and BSQ and BCQ (r=0.568; p=0.002). Risk behaviors for ED and low body dissatisfaction were identified among visually impaired women. Further studies are needed to expand the knowledge on this subject in this population.