In a new study of more than 2,000 obese people a full 8% did not see themselves as having a weight problem, and they didn't see themselves as being at risk. Researchers interviewed Dallas, TX residents who were all classified as obese, that is having a BMI of 30 or more. They found that those who didn't believe they had a weight problem were also happier with their health and felt healthier than other participants who recognized their obesity. They didn't believe they were at an increased risk for heart attack or diabetes and even classified themselves as having a low risk of becoming obese.
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Dr. Tiffany M. Powell of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and her colleagues measured this misperception by having participants study a group of 9 figures of different body sizes, from very thin to very obese. Participants were asked to select the ideal figure and then the figure that looked most like them. Those who chose ideal body sizes that were the same or larger than their own were classified as misperceiving their body size.
What's perhaps more disturbing than their failure to realize their own body size is their failure to recognize the health risks associated with being obese. Those who misperceived their body size had the same health risks as those who accurately assessed themselves, but a full half of those who mispercieved said that they were healthier than others their age.
One possible reason for the misconception that Powell suggests is the increase in overweight and obesity in the US. According to Reuters, she says, "There is this tendency that if everyone around you looks a certain way, you either want to look that way or you're comfortable looking the way you are."
