Investigation of Teenagers’ Weight Loss Practice in Hong Kong

My topic is based on my research and the questionnaire I gave out to conduct the research is based on why teenagers aim at reducing the weight. The main purpose of this academic survey is to learn and evaluate the pattern of youth weight loss. The questionnaire I used to conduct the research on this topic will provide a reference method for Hong Kong youth to lose of weight.

Objective

• To know which gender is more like to be affected by weight loss.
• To know at what age are people exposed to weight loss.
• To find out if the people have a habit of exercising and on average how many hours or days in a week.
• To find out the weight and height of individuals and to know what they think about their weight and height.
• To find out if one has ever tried to lose weight and the amount of weight they lost and the reason for trying to lose weight.
• The objective is to know the view of individuals regarding the process of losing weight. The goal is to know whether the process is painful and how much it cost them to engage in exercise.
• To also know the methods that people tend to use for the purpose of losing weight may it be diet, exercise, meditation, drinking plenty of water and others.
• The aim is also to know why an individual would choose to lose weight is it to build self-confidence or due to the stigmatization of being laughed at for being fat or being sick from obesity and others.
• To also know which methods ae effective in loss of weight is it keeping diet or doing exercise.
• To also know if improper methods of weight loss as effects like dizziness, diarrhoea, weak limbs.
• To also know which weight is the most suitable one.
• To investigate the weight loss practise in Hong-Kong.
• To know the difference between actual weight and perceived weight
• To know why people, practice weight control despite of them being underweight.

Abstract

Weight loss has highly been noticed among teenagers in Hong Kong. Hence, this research is aimed at finding out where there is a high weight loss report in Hong Kong. The weight loss from my research it is highly experienced among the female gender from the age of 15 to 45. Most of them aim at keeping shape and staying healthy fit.

Although weight loss is also experienced among other youths it is not at a high rate has compared to the female gender.  From my research I am going to know which is the most effective method for weight loss for man and the most effective weight loss method for females.

From my research there has been a high rate of obesity experienced in Hong Kong, Young, B.W., 2007, yet still most of the teenagers are trying their level best to maintain a normal body mass index a high rate of weight gain has been reported.

My research is also going to concentrate more on why people practise weight control, Sciamanna, C.N., 2011, just to have a perceived body weight rather than doing it just to have a normal body weight. The perceived body weight tends to mislead most of our teenagers since they see that only the masculine males and the slender females tend to be shown on the social media platforms. Hence, they all aim at having the same body weight since, they perceive it as the normal body weight.

I would recommend that individuals drink lots of water, exercise and follow diet if they want to reduce weight. This are natural ways of reducing body weight, Harini, A., 2017, that don’t have any chemicals involved like using the product meant for reducing weight if this product is used they may have future complications to an individual. Hence, teenagers and adults are encouraged to practise weight control by regularly exercising and eating fruits and vegetables.

From my understanding of weight loss, no, one has the right to mock or laugh at another person due to an extra pound on their body. That is one should not be judged due to how big or small they look the stigmatization that comes with body weight is quit high and hence a way to mitigate this stigmatization should be found. People should be allowed to feel comfortable with their body that is no one should let what other people say about his body change their personality.

People should learn to accept themselves the way they are and not look forward at listening to the opinions of what other people think about the physical appearance. The decision to lose weight should solely be made by an individual not from people compliments on what they think someone should weigh.

The behaviour of weight loss is highly seen among the teenagers and the motivation to reach a perceived right body weight is also seen or prevalent among the youths. The desire to reach the desired weight is what determines the type of excise to be undertaken by someone. although, nothing much is known about the young youth’s connection of the perceived weight of the body and the control of the weight in Hong Kong.

The main purpose of this study research is to know which group of teenagers are highly likely to lose weight and which is the perceived weight loss, and the body weight and also the practises of the weight –loss control among the teenagers.  Strategies or methods to be used is based on a survey done via a questionnaire. A questionnaire which is relevant to the investigation of the weight loss among teenagers in Hong Kong was conducted.

From the questionnaire weight loss was highly seen among girls more than males, Ricciardelli, L., 2001, Though from more research a higher number of girls saw or had a perception that they were more over weight thus despite a small number being overweight a higher percentage of the individuals viewed themselves as being overweight.

Observing diet by deducting the fats and junky staff that someone consumes, doing exercise, and also taking vegetables and fruits at a higher rate and lowering the consumption of sugary goods were the most commonly reported methods to lose weight.  In general, there is a difference in gender weight-loss of the body.

The discussion is going to focus on the perceived body weight. It also came across my mind that teenagers and even the adult they tend to practise weight control even when there are underweight. Hence from my research I am going to understand why doing weight-loss practise control is important even when someone is underweight or physically healthy.

The fact that my questionnaire has also concentrated on those people that are obese the survey is going to help us raise an effective method that can be used to help those that are obese to effectively practice weight loss control.

Introduction

Teenage hood is a stage of tremendous transformation. It entails transitioning from childhood reliance to adulthood independence, Morton, B.M., 2017, Teenagers experience dramatic changes in their physical growth, perception, personality, families, friends, and identity as they work toward liberation, identity forming, and operatively assumption. Hence, there more concerned about their body weight.

Teenagers tend to do what they see their role models doing that is most of the teenagers tend to idealize the media personality body image and hence you will meet that most of the teenagers will be aspiring to look like most of the people that they see in the media. Hence teenagers will aim at weight- loss because they Want to look like someone they have seen in a social media platform like Instagram, Facebook or televisions and others.

The high increase of weight loss prevailing among the teenagers in Hong Kong has been caused by the desire to achieve the desired body weight, Sobal, J., 2007, and also due to the stigmatization that people encounter. The survey conducted via the questionnaire was to help in knowing at what age are individuals more likely to desire to lose weight.

We are also going to discuss on the most effective methods of losing weight, Iuriatin, A.A., 2013, is it keeping diet thus keeping diet is known as following a fixed program of the food you’re going to consume. Excising is also another effective method of losing weight we are going on how many times one needs to excising to keep fit.

In addition, if one cannot follow diet or exercise there are also other ways that can be used to help in weight-loss. Like using product meant for reducing weight, meditation, drinking a lot of water and others. We are going to discuss more on this and their effect on the body of a teenager.

However, in spite of all the ongoing concern for weight-loss control among the young youths there has been a higher increase of the rate of obesity in Hong Kong, Janus, E.D., 1999. The girls tend to pay more attention on their appearance and are always watching their weight from a very young age unlike males who begin to pay attention to their weight at an older age.

Girls wants to stay thin since they perceive being slender has beauty while boys only value masculinity since they view it as being healthy and physically fit. For teenagers to achieve this   they end up engaging in different weight loss activities like excising, diet observations and others.

The eagerness to reduce weight is worked towards due to the perceived or desired right that an individual want. Thus perception of the body weight is defined as the way or the weight that individuals view as the underweight, normal or overweight. This is also referred as body view dissertation.

Youths that criticize others or their own body weight normally shows lack of satisfaction with their body. Those people that are really healthy and are still overweight or see themselves as fat there most likely to participate in losing weight activities, Krawczynski, M., 2009.  However, individuals who are also overweight and have excess pounds might also engage in losing weight since there comfortable with their won y and they appreciate themselves. The lack of satisfaction with your weight causes the loss of weight activities

Youths tend to take advantage of all the activities that are done to reduce weight may it be exercise, keeping diet, meditation or consuming of vegetable and fruits only teenagers, Yeung, W.L.T.L., 2010, tend to follow these activities to the latter. Though most teenagers tend to adopt the method of not taking meals and engaging in smoking which be harmful to them in the future. From the research I collected it is clear that there is a reduction in exercising an eating of vegetables and fruits among teenagers who see themselves as overweight.

The perception of the body weight does not actually reflect the actual body weight. Something that is perceive does not really align with the reality. The weight of someone is most especially influenced by the demographics that is age, gender, family, ethnicity and others. Even young people are also worried about their weight in Hong Kong. This wariness would develop even during the individual’s youth life or teenage hood.

Females tend to be more engaged in observing their body weight, Pajaujiene, S., 2005, and mostly you will find that a woman who is not overweight might as well be engaging in overweight activities despite of them being physically fit. Weight loss is more preferably for people that are obese thus because doing an exercise when there is no need to is accompanies by some effects that can affect an individual.

Most of the teenagers tend to copy or be influenced by their friends, Muir, S.L., 1999, in relation to the weight of their friends. Teenagers ten to be pressured about the weight they want   and this peer pressure affect them negatively. And also the facts that most teenagers want to be media personal they tend to try and be slender since most of the images of media are comprised of masculinity and women who are slender, this has caused this images to be perceived as the norm of how a man or woman should look like.

The teenagers weight loss practise can be controlled by the perception of the teenagers on which is the normal boy weight. Despite of obese becoming a world-wide problem major cases have been reported in in Hong Kong, most young children are obese. Since most of the teenagers are after keeping their body slim and masculine hence the chances of being unhealthy his minimal let alone being obese.

For one to be able to maintain normal body weight is extremely important since it will save someone from being exposed to different types of sicknesses and benefit them by living a healthy life. The main purpose is to investigate the weight loss practise by teenagers in Hon Kong, Jeewon, R., 2013.Using the questionnaire to conduct the survey. The goal is to know which are the effective methods of practising for body loss. And to also determine the difference between the actual body loss and the perceived body weight and to also know the effect of the perceived weight loss on the teenager’s health in regards to body weight.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Teenagers’ perceptions of their body weight

Perception is that ability to be able to analyze something in a different way depending in what you have seen, heard or known, Bibby, H., 2007, hence perceived body weight loss is the weight that someone assumes to be the ideal body weight that the society perceives to be the weight they want to achieve.

Body weight perception is known as the analysis of self-weight and seeing it as underweight without looking at the actual weight, this is also known as the dissertation of the boy image. Adolescent cognitive growth, Dolin, K.G., 2005, is related to body image and weight perception. The relationship between weight, weight perception, and weight adjustment behaviours among local adolescents is poorly understood.

This is statistically measured by posing a question of how someone views their body sizes and someone is given the choices of being overweight, underweight, obese or having normal weight. The way someone views their body is what determines if there are going to take the control practices for weight loss.

According, Johnson, C.A., 2006, to a study of Chinese teenagers, more boys identify themselves as slim, while more girls describe themselves as overweight. Media coverage, body image, and health – related behaviours are all linked to weight dissatisfaction. Overweight children in Hong Kong are more likely than obese children.

Overweight compared to average weight Children believe they have more body fat, as well as a lower level of physical maturity and self-esteem. Weight interpretation is one of the driving factors for weight management behaviours, and it is a greater predictor of adolescent dieting and exercise than actual weight. Weight-related behaviours are multifaceted and dynamic, with a multi-factorial causation. Some behaviours cause weight gain, while others evolve as a reaction, and still others are just associations.

Self-medication via dietary supplements, sedatives, laxatives, or purgation ranges from safe habits, Elvin-Lewis, M.P., 2003, to severe types of self-medication. Excessive weight anxiety and distorted body image are linked to health-risking behaviours like drug abuse and, in the case of teenage girls, suicide attempts.

Overweight or underweight Adolescents who believe they are overweight are more likely to develop eating disorders like anorexia nervosa.  As a result, it’s crucial to figure out what influences teenage weight-control behavior.

Body Weight-control practices by teenagers

Control of body weight are the measures that are taken to ensure that someone observes their weight, D’Alessio, D.A., 2008. In addition, some changes should be observed after someone has decided to observe their weight that is after like 3 months the changes should be easily noticed that is after the physical exercises, the keeping of diets or the consumption of fruits and vegetables the changes should be visible after three months of observing this.

The questionnaires were created in such a way to know if someone is trying to lose or gain weight and the answer given was aimed at ensuring that the research conducted helped in developing the best method for controlling the weight of individuals.

The body weight control practices, Ravens-Sieberer, U., 2015, included physical activities, observing diet, meditating, eating fruits and vegetables, reducing the junk foods, reducing snacks consumed and consuming a lot of water. This will help in the practise of weight loss and might also help those people that are obese and wish to reduce or maintain their weight and be healthy they should aim at observing the above practices. An obese person should aim at consuming health food and observing a balanced diet, an also they should reduce the amount of food that they consume during meal time.

Nearly half of the individuals that participated in conducting the survey they were also engaged in practices for controlling weight. Almost 44% of the people that responded they highlighted that they were trying to lose weight, Jones, J., 2005, whereas around 7% said that they were also working towards gaining weight. Hence, in one way or another people engaged in weight control practices.

When you compare the questionnaire answered by females you will realize that almost 70% were engaged in losing their weight as compared to males since only around 20% were engaging in the weight control practices. From Body Mass Index you will realize that around 82% of the people that involved practices of weight loss control they had a Body Mass Index, Pandit, D., 2011, which is less than 85% percentile thus (46% males in comparison with 95% females).

The relation or the connection between the perceived weight of the body and the activities for weight control was quite high in a way that 86% of the people involved in the loss of weight practices, Lowe, M.R., 2003, over exaggerated their body mass. The perception of the body weight is used as a key to determining the practices for control of the body mass.

The survey conducted showed that the physical appearance and the fitness of the health were more crucial concerns of the weight, hence from the survey you will see that (56% of the participant highlighted the physical appearance, Liechty, T., 2012, and around 44% said they had health problems). The weight concern did not highlight any difference in the gender.

 

 

Reasons why teenagers practise weight-loss

To increase their self-confidence and boost their self-esteem.

Teenagers also practise weight loss to increase their body health.

They also practise weight loss to boost their personality

To maintain healthy benefit over a life time, Tarnoff, M., 2005, that is there more likely to increase their cholesterol and have a hydrated body when they maintain a healthy body weight.

Chances of being sick are minimal when someone has a healthy body weight and is comfortable with their body.

Forms of weight control practices

The survey was also carried out to determine and evaluate the type of weight control that is carried out. though a higher percentage of people tend to engage in weight control so that to reduce their body size rather than to gain weight or maintain the body mass index. Most people engage in weight control to reach the idealized or perceived body weight.

To decide weight reduction practices, various diet and exercise methods were evaluated. Lower calorie intake (85.7%), workout (79.8%), Sinha, R., 2014, increasing consumption of fruit and vegetables (68.2%), decreasing the volume of food ingested at meals hours (60.0%), lowering the amount of snack taken during meals (49%), and maintaining a healthy diet were the most frequently cited strategies among both respondents.

Meditation (6%) and dietary restrictions (12 %), Dada, R., 2017, were also uncommon. Only 4% and others said they exercised to reduce weight were getting the prescribed one hour of exercise a day, and only 4% of those who said they ate more vegetables and fruit were getting the average 3 servings of fruit and 2 servings of vegetables per day.

There was no demographic disparity between the form of weight loss or the use of safe and unhealthy weight loss strategies. Teenagers obtained weight-control information from a variety of outlets. According to the current report, the internet (60%) was the most common source of knowledge for this reason, followed by parents (20%), and peers (15%), Turner, K.M., 2012.

Weight Loss Teenagers’ Physical Activity, Breakfast Consumption, and Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Trends

Physical activity involves those that can been seen or observed and are in this case are specifically done to help in weight loss. Physical activity involves, Edwardson, C., 2009, the practices that are done by people to maintain their weight, or to reduce their weight. Hence, this are activities aimed at helping in controlling weight.

By comparing observed attempts to lose weight, physical exercise and eating patterns were compared. There were no variations in physical exercise or dietary patterns. About 3.9% of those who said they were attempting to lose weight (9% of boys and 2% of girls), Perry, C., 2005, were getting the recommended one hour of physical exercise a day. Breakfast was consumed on a daily basis by slightly more than half of the study (60%).

Just 20% of them, on the other hand, ate a fruit with their meal. The study’s findings indicate that people’s intake of vegetables and fruits is generally limited. Just 2% of the people polled said they ate 6 portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Surprisingly, 71% of weight-loss women, Ahlgren, C., 2014, can’t consume any fruit on a regular basis.

In general, we can say that it is highly recommended to observe the fruits and vegetable consumption, maintaining a healthy diet is also very important, the physical activities like engaging in physical exercise is another activity that can help someone that want to lose weight. Though it is more important to follow the prescribed physical activities rather than forming your own.

Young teenagers are e recommended to avoid skipping their meals since as long as there looking to keep their body slender they should as well aim at being physically healthy and should avoid engaging in daily physical activities since excess of doing physical activities in the gym can bring harm to their body, hence they should take care of themselves.

Dietary Intake

Dietary habits and recreation habits have shifted as a result of progress. Obesity and overweight have been linked to sedentary behaviours and the intake of fatty and sweetened foods and beverages. In addition to physical risks, overweight and obesity have detrimental social and emotional consequences such as low self-esteem, bullying, depression, and behavioral problems.

Keeping diet is one of the major ways, Rutishauser, I.H., 2005, to have weight loss or maintain her healthy body. Hence consumption of vegetables and fruits and drinking a lot of water. A teenager should visit nutritionists to know the amount of fruits and vegetables he or she should eat to maintain a normal weight, when it comes to fruits one should know the amount of food he or she should consume daily to avoid dietary negative impact.

Activities done physically

The questionnaire is created in such a way to meet the needs of both the teenagers and the adults. The survey will help us know how many times they engaged in the practices of weight loss since the questions are structured in such a manner. The participant was requested to report how many times they exercise in a week and how many hours do they take to exercise daily.

The questions in the survey were created to specifically meet the needs of the study and of those people that what to be physically fit. The number of times the exercise was done, Smith, B.K., 2009, and the duration was multiplied to give a total amount of hours of the physical activity in a week and thus helping in finding out the recommended number of hours that someone is supposed to practise weight loss to avoid bringing harm to someone body.

This physical activity was highly recommended since there are healthier than self-medication and detoxification for the sake of losing weight. Teenagers and young adults are encouraged to adopt this means of weight loss since there is no minimal harm that can affect your body.

Going to gym, jogging or doing some other exercises is healthier than self-medicating one self. Hence in the questionnaire the questions majorly asked in part A are in relation to how many times one does exercise. Also the survey helps us understand were individuals tend to engage in practices for weight-loss even when there physically fit.

 

The Actual Weight Based on Body Mass Index

The people that participated in the survey were both boys and girls and the questionnaire were equally distributed among both the genders the minimal age of the people that participated in the survey was 15 and the maximum was 45 years, which means the average age was 21. Based on the Body Mass Index, 15,9% is underweight thus, Norimah, A.K., 2009, (8% of the males and 24% of the females): also 70.9% is normal weight thus ((72,6% of the males and 69% of the females). In addition, overweight according to Body Mass Index, Gorber, B., 2007, was 10.9% overweight thus (15.8% of the males and 5.7 of the female).

This are the result of the two genders viewed their body weight, most perceived it as overweight others underweight and majority normal. You will realize that a higher percentage of the female gender perceived their body weight has overweight and higher percentage has low weight. Hence this leads us to a conclusion that women are more concerned about their weight unlike males.

It can also be observed that males tend to consider their weight to be normal weight than women, that why from my research it is evident that women are never satisfied with their weight they all idealize being slender is what is considered normal weight. Instead of following the body mass index idealization of which percentage shows the normal body weight.

Mass of The Body Based On Body Mass Index and Perception of the Weight of Body

Perception of the body weight

Overestimation of the body weight due to the misconception that people have about which is supposed to be the correct perceived weight can cause conflict between the body mass index and the difference between how both genders perceive their weight. Since from our research it is quite obvious that girls tend to overstate there weight you might find that, Jackson, A. A. 2007, 60% of the girls overestimated their weight while 15% understated their weight.

Between the participants that might have an underweight or normal body mass index, Andersen, V., 2009, 35% of the participant view themselves as being overweight. Under estimated weight and the normal weight females and a significantly incorrect analysis with the current weight readings around 55% of the females, Steptoe, A., 2006, would find themselves to be having a higher weight in comparison to 10% of those females that had a normal weight and the males that were underweight.

Generally, we can say that there is quite a higher difference between the body weight perceived and the body mass index. Since the perceived body weight is quite higher as compared to the body mass index(BMI). Hence individuals should be encouraged towards reaching the body mass index not their perceived body weight.

Factors that can lead to teenager’s loss of weight

This can be caused by the stress that a teenager might be experiencing hence leading them to lose their weight. That is a teenager might be having stress due to family issues or their personal life,

Weight loss among teenager can also be caused due to their own willingness to what to lose weight. That is a teenager might be personally willing to lose that extra fat in their body.

A teenager might also be aspiring to look like someone they know, since they think that age of that person is the actual body weight that a normal person should weigh.

The desire of teenagers to lose weight, Meltzer, L.J., 2008, can also be caused by peer pressure that is a teenager may want to lose weight since their friends are also losing weight.

The desire to impress and build a self-confident image for themselves is also another thing that may cause teenagers to what to lose their weight

The criticism that they have received due to their weight might lead the teenagers to suffer depression which might make them loose their weight.

Teenagers are also influence by their surrounding hence the desire to have a higher self-esteem about their body is also another factor that contributes equally to teenager’s desire to lose weight.

Another factor is that teenagers may be uncomfortable with their own body hence that desire to really want to attract people is what mostly influences them towards weight-loss.

Anxiety can also cause loss of weight among the teenagers and the adults. Hence to maintain body weight people are encouraged to avoid stress, depression and anxieties.

In addition, engaging in work that needs or requires lots of energy is another form of weight loss practise but it can lead to weight loss for the teenagers and adults.

Genes of the teenager is another factor that can lead to lose of weight, Gilbert‐Barness, E., 2007, that is someone have come from a family that people never get thick that is everyone in the family is slender and masculine hence leading to the desire to look like there family members.

METHODOLOGY

Questionnaire

The questionnaire is structured in such a way to help gather all the information than can help in investigating the weight loss practise of the teenagers. Thus the major goal of this survey is to do a research on body weight and evaluate the most effective methods of weight-loss practise method.

The questionnaire is structured in a way, Krosnick, J.A., 2018, that it can the details in relation to the demographics that is the age of someone answering, there background, why they tend to lose weight, why they think it is important for them to lose weight and what is there perceived body weight. It also helps to understand why someone thinks that he or she is overweight when there are perfectly healthy and have normal weight.

The questionnaire also helps us understand what is the weight of someone who is obese, Crosby, R.D., 2009, how they ended up being obese, what is there current weight, how do they tend to reduce there where weight, in addition we get the details of the food there supposed to be consuming and why they should practise weight control practices.

The questionnaire also aims at asking how regularly someone consume water and why someone body should stay hydrated and why it is important to consume fruits and vegetables regularly, and why it can be harmful for someone who is underweight to continue trying to lose their weight. The questionnaire helps us gather different information on this.

The questionnaire is also structured in such a way that we can be able to get all the information we need in relation to which is the best for effective weight-loss practice. And which is not recommendable. That is depending on the most selected weight loss method we are able to know which is the more effective method to practise while trying to lose weight.

The format of the questionnaire is as shown below;

 

Part A: Introduction and personal information

1. Gender: □male □female
2. Age: □15-24 □25-34 □35-44 □45 or above
3. Do you have a habit of exercising? □Yes □No
4. How long do you exercise on average a week?

□1 hour or less □2-4 hours □5-7 hours □8 hours or more

5. What is your height? (In cm as unit) _______________
6. What is your weight? (In kg as unit) _______________
7. What do you think of your weight? □Underweight □Normal range □Overweight

□Slightly obese □Severely obese

The following are your standards for measuring obesity？	Yes	No
8.      Weight	□	□
9.      Body fat	□	□
10.  Evaluation of others	□	□
11.  Visual Senses	□	□
12.  Diagnosis by professional doctors	□	□
13.  Sports performance	□	□
14.  Daily activities	□	□
15.  Ease of wearing clothes	□	□
16.  Compare with others	□	□
17.  Waist circumference	□	□

 

18. Have you ever tried to lose weight? □Yes □No
19. How many times have you tried to lose weight? □1-2 times □3-4 times □5-6 times

□7 times or more

20. How many pounds have you successfully lost weight? □2 pounds or less □3-5 pounds

□6-8 pounds □9 pounds or more

21. How long did you lose weight? □1 year or less □2-4 years □5-7 years □8 years or more
22. Do you think losing weight is a painful thing? □Yes □No
23. How much do you use for weight loss every month?

□$1000 or below □$1001-$2000 □$2001-$3000 □$3001 or above

 

 

 

 

Have you ever used the following methods to lose weight?	Yes	No
24. Exercise	□	□
25. Diet	□	□
26. Taking or using weight loss products	□	□
27. Go to a beauty salon for weight loss treatment	□	□
28. Weight loss guided by a doctor/nutritionist	□	□
29. Drink plenty of water	□	□
30. Eat weight loss meal replacement	□	□
31. Ketogenic diet	□	□
32. Carnivorous diet method	□	□
33. Meditation	□	□
34. Perform liposuction	□	□
35. Calculate calorie diet	□	□
36. 168 Intermittent fasting method	□	□

Part B: Please select your level of consent:

	Strongly agree	Agree	No comment	Disagree	Strongly disagree
Why are you losing weight	□	□	□	□	□
37. Enhance self-confidence	□	□	□	□	□
38. Hope to become healthy	□	□	□	□	□
39. Look good in clothes	□	□	□	□	□
40. Want the body shape of an idol	□	□	□	□	□
	Strongly agree	Agree	No comment	Disagree	Strongly disagree
41. Being laughed at	□	□	□	□	□
42. Want to maintain weight	□	□	□	□	□
43. Eat more food	□	□	□	□	□
44. Recognition among peers	□	□	□	□	□
45. Being overweight puts pressure on joints	□	□	□	□	□
46. Enriching time	□	□	□	□	□
47. Attend important occasions (such as weddings)	□	□	□	□	□
Do you think the following methods are effective ways to lose weight?
48. Do exercise	□	□	□	□	□
49. Diet	□	□	□	□	□
50. Take or use weight loss products	□	□	□	□	□
51. Go to beauty salon for weight loss treatment	□	□	□	□	□
52. Weight loss guided by a doctor/nutritionist	□	□	□	□	□
53. Drink plenty of water	□	□	□	□	□
54. Eat weight loss meal replacement	□	□	□	□	□
55. Ketogenic diet method	□	□	□	□	□
56. Carnivorous diet method	□	□	□	□	□
57. Meditation	□	□	□	□	□
58. Perform liposuction	□	□	□	□	□
59. Calculate calorie diet	□	□	□	□	□
60. 168 Intermittent fasting method	□	□	□	□	□
Do you think improper weight loss methods will cause the following situations?
61. Dizziness	□	□	□	□	□
62. Diarrhea	□	□	□	□	□
63. Weak limbs	□	□	□	□	□
64. Extremely hungry	□	□	□	□	□
65. Feeling low	□	□	□	□	□
66. Hand shock	□	□	□	□	□
67. Insomnia	□	□	□	□	□
68. Suffer from eating disorders	□	□	□	□	□
69. Weight rebound	□	□	□	□	□
70. Failed to lose weight	□	□	□	□	□

 

71. What do you think is the suitable weight? (In kg or pound units) ____________________

Participants

In my survey I used people that are physically overweight, underweight or obese to conduct my research though I concentrated more on the teenagers and the adults. I also had to engage people that have media personality and are pretty exposed to the social media to understand why people perceive the body weight of those people that are popular to be the ideal body weight.

The questionnaire survey was carried out among teenagers and youths that are between the age brackets of (15-45). All participants, Slack, K., 2006, of the survey were individuals that are academies and live around Hong Kong. The questionnaire was distributed among the citizens of Hong Kong and Sheffield Halen University and the instructions given to the participant was that they should answer accordingly.

The main reason I conducted these academic survey was to help the youths of Hong Kong to practise the right methods of losing weight. In addition, it was also to help student in answering the academic questions, the questionnaire is meant to give personal information about the participant that is there gender, there daily practices towards the weight loss, and how many times they practise to reduce weight.

The survey included questions to help in knowing the level of consent like why an individual would choose to lose weight, the methods they use to lose weight and which are the most effective methods that can be used to lose weight is it the diet, exercise consumption of fruits and vegetables and others. The survey included also the importance of keeping your body hydrated.

The main question that needed to be addressed in the questionnaire is, which is supposedly the suitable body weight that an individual should aim at weighing. Hence to achieve this the survey needs to be conducted among so many youths to get the most repeated weight that most youths have chosen has the ideal weight that a normal person and healthy person should weigh.

The scale to be used to measure how life style related health issues have an impact on the public health, the questionnaire was created to follow a methodology which entails a literature review, an evaluation. The questionnaire that is developed entails part A and Part B. Under which there was personal information and part B which entails the reason for weight loss.

Questionnaire’s, Gillham, B., 2008, Development

Step 1: Examining the literature

The survey was conducted to measure the demographics like, male and female and the age of the of people that are often practise weight-loss, White, E., 2005, The stage also involves the reviewing of how many times people tend to exercise in a week how many hours they take to excise, what is there height and their weight and what an individual think of their weight.

The literature examination also helps in the questionnaire to help other people know how many times they should exercise per day what sort of food they should eat, how drinking water and staying hydrated is important for their body. The analysis of literature review will also help in guiding people or showing them the importance of having a balanced diet often.

It is also important since it helps analyze the difference between being obese, overweight, underweight and more importantly since this survey is meant to show people which is the actual body weight of someone it is important to know what body mass index is.

Step 2: discussion communities of a specific emphasis

The survey was conducted with people that are obese. In addition, in this stage one also measures the standards for measuring obesity which are body weight, body fat, visual senses, evaluation of others, sports performance, daily activities, waist circumference and others. The questionnaire is meant to determine the number of people feeling insecure about their body weight.

The group is meant to analyze the weight and height of the obese people, Bliddal, H., 2007, and to know how their lifestyle are and what there are doing to take care of their weight and to be healthy. The group discussion is also meant to ensure that they come up with a standard and a suitable weight that is considered to be normal.

In addition, in this stage one also measures the   standards for measuring obesity which are weight, body fat, visual senses, evaluation of others, sports performance, daily activities, waist circumference and others. The questionnaire is meant to determine the number of people affected by the weight.

Step 3: Inventive thinking

That is an idea of how to carry out the survey is carried out from different ideas or fields that someone hopes that it will help us to know the weight that is assumed to be the norm weight that every individual should way.

An idea of which are the most effective methods to be used in reduction of weight or treatment of obesity, Bailer, B.A., 2005, and which practise method they should follow to achieve their desired weight, and how to get treat from the obesity and how to achieve that desired weight loss.

The brain storming of ideas is aimed at coming up with the best effective ideas that can be used to for practise on ways to reduce weight and maintain weight. Holding discussion between different groups will help in knowing which is the normal body weight.

Step 4:  Expert examination

 The ideas are then evaluated by the expert in this field. The questions are then improved to meet the needs of the people and to meet the objective that the survey is conducted for. Expert in the field of weight loss, Hemmelgarn, B.R., 2011, are then used to measure the weight loss and to know how to help in forming the questions in a way that they can meet the objective of the questionnaire.

Step 5: Application of this study

The questionnaire is given to the set of youths that are likely to be engaging in weight loss that is the people that are engaging in reducing body weight that is the teenagers. And the method of practising on means to reduce weight are mitigated that is if doing exercise and keeping diet are the methods that are meant to help people that are really overweight to reduce their weight.

Phase of Validation

This the phase where individuals with different ethnicity or disabled and are not able to communicate properly or are in refusal to participate in the survey, Sin, C.H., 2005, hence this is the stage where the unserious group is gotten rid of and only a group of people are selected to do the questionnaire.

I only selected a few people to participate in my survey after getting rid of those that might lead to the failure of my survey. Hence, I concentrated on the more serious group.

Item evaluation

Each questionnaire that was answered by the participants was given a mark and a rightful score, Reeve, B.B., 2007, that is every answer deserves a score to help know how heavily someone agrees with something. That is if someone strongly agrees that which practise is the best method for achieving weight loss.

The giving of marks accordingly helped to make it easy for me to be able to get which is the actual body weight and to also understand why it is important to avoid self-intimidating others and making them feel intimidated by other peoples’ body weight.

Analytical statistics

This is an analysis that is used to measure demographics and to know at weight age do people get affected by the eagerness to want to lose weight. The statistical analysis helps in knowing the percentage of gender, Rowley, J., 2014, that is likely to try weight loss due to their perceived normal weight. And to know which gender is likely to be affected.

Sources that contributed to the success of my research

Listening to what people had to say about their weight was a big help to me since it helped me to carry out my survey in a more effective manner without having to strain. In addition, the questionnaire I distributed to different people helped me to also understand there was a difference between the actual body weight and the body mass index.

Moreover, the different ideas I got from the internet gave me a rough idea of what my research should entail. When I read the previous articles which are related to my surveys. I was able to know what was expected of me when doing my research paper.

looking at the body weight of different people in the media helped in conducting the research, because when you go through the social media it is quite understandable why someone would choose to look like someone in the social media. It helped me understand why people concentrated on having their perceived body weight rather than having a normal body weight.

In addition, the discussions I held with my friends helped me to conduct the research properly. Since my group discussions were of great help to me. They helped me get the ideas of what I should cover in my project.

Results

The questionnaire result helped in strategically coming up with rules and regulations that can help in mitigating the perceive weight loss that all teenagers want to achieve. The tendency of teenagers to do exercise when they are not even overweight is not considered to be okay and healthy though it can be mitigated by ensuring the normal weight, Maliha, K., 2009, is determined and individuals only do the practices for weight loss even when there are perfectly okay since, it can be harmful for their body.

People that are obese are not also supposed to do some practices since they can be harmful for their body they should look forward at following the doctor’s guidelines on how to take care of themselves and how to work towards mitigating and taking care of their weight. And how to maintain a normal weight that is healthy for them to avoid being exposed to sicknesses.

The statics result should also show us which gender is more likely, Lally, M.M., 2007, to watch their weight and from the findings it is obvious that women tend to watch their weight than men. That is women look forward at being slender while a man works towards achieving masculinity. Hence the gender that tends to watch their weight more are women. Women tend to start caring about their weight at a very young age. Unlike men who starts watching the weight at an older age.

The result should also show us which method is the best to be used for effective practise of weight loss and why it should be used and why only those people that are actually overweight are encouraged to do practices for weight loss and those that are excising due to their perceived weight loss.

Individual characteristics, protection and crime, family wellbeing and community engagement, psychological wellbeing, lifestyle factors, fitness issue and behavior patterns, and nutrition are all covered in the survey. It’s a self-administered survey.

Discussion

The aim of the research was to look at adolescents’ perceptions of their body growth and weight control habits, Lawton, J., 2006, and the results back up the general trend. Weight experience was not well associated with actual weight status. Gender variations in body weight perception and weight management behavior were discovered. Girls and women were also more likely than males to overestimate their body weight and partake in weight-loss behaviours.

The beliefs, behaviours, and experiences a person has about his or her body are referred to as body image. This definition relies heavily on weight interpretation. Body weight perceptions are unreliable when compared to BMI determined from either self-reported or measured height and weight, according to the findings of this review, which agree with results from the United States.

In particular, in women, the correlation between real Body mass index and expected weight, Nuttall, F.Q., 2015, became low, while in male it was fair. Women were more likely to boys to perceive themselves heavy, while boys were more likely to view themselves malnourished. Fully understanding for these differences between men and women can aid healthcare professionals in supporting teenagers in making effective weight-control choices.

Although there are obvious health benefits to losing weight in people who are overweight or obese, our research suggests that female adolescents are more driven to adopt weight-control behaviours by their body image than by their real Body Mass Index. Girls and women who thought they were heavy were more willing to work out, cut back on calories, or detox.

 

Teenagers’ use of some of the behaviours to achieve weight control is concerning, Lohman, T., 2005, specifically when they have been based on incorrect weight expectations. The clear link between these behaviours and low levels of self-esteem, depressed mood, suicidal thoughts, and drug and alcohol abuse further distorts the image.

Male teenagers’ weight-control practices are less concerning, because they workout or limit their food consumption and therefore do not self-medicate or detox. Consequently, certain behaviours were projected both by perceived weight and real Body mass index.

There are a few flaws in this report. To begin with, there is a conflict with using self-reported data in BMI metric calculation, Collins, C.E., 2014. Teenagers have a propensity to over-report their height while under-reporting their weight, according to previous research.   That being said, mission statement from other countries have also shown that recorded and calculated values are significantly associated.

Furthermore, self-reported teenage height, weight, and Body mass index measured from either of these parameters have really been considered to be significantly reliable, and thus can be used to research obesity and overweight in teenagers. While we were unable to locate any relevant research from Hong Kong, there is really no reason to assume there really is a distinction in our teenagers.

Based on the cross aspect of this analysis, causality between perceived weight, real Body Mass Image, and weight maintenance behaviours could not have been determined. A prospect template may be used in future research to investigate this. Furthermore, since the data was collected from youths of age brackets (15 -45), the results can be applied to the entire adolescent age group. This study should be replicated for different age ranges and in different countries. It’s also worth looking at the mediating influences, Hilbert, A., 2016, that influence weight-related behavior changes.

We agree that wellness programs must take into consideration the value of cultivating a reasonable and healthy physical appearance, especially for female teenagers, given the severity of the obesity and overweight issue found and the incredibly dangerous weight management practices documented by our teenagers. Healthy practices should be encouraged, while unhealthy behaviours should be prevented.

Thinness and appearance are often conflated in the mainstream. Adolescents are especially prone due to their evolving cognitive abilities, Hayne, H., 2011. In this region of the world, Western influence has aided female’s unhealthy habits.  As a result, colleges and wellness organizations must promote a positive body image in order to combat these influences. Balanced caloric input and output are just as vital as education about what constitutes safe weight, growth, and growth.

Furthermore, rather than just being motivated by their own views of their weight, females are more likely to need assistance in choosing suitable weight management behaviours for their health care needs.

In addition, according to research, people’s perceptions of their body weight are greater than their actual body weight. Obesity was discovered in Hong Kong’s youngest children, Ejekwu, A., 2012, desired to be slim, but the majority of young adults were obese. The higher proportion of measured average weight by people is also what they consider as normal body weight, and it is far from it, according to the questionnaire.

Similarly, to previous studies, the predicted outcome of this study indicated that women, unlike boys, appear to overestimate their weight. More study also shown that, in contrast to adults, teenagers are more likely to partake in weight-loss practices. A comparable pattern was found in students who were attempting to lose some weight, with an estimated 86% of students attempting to lose the weight.

The survey questions findings demonstrated a significant pattern. 87% of students who were interested in weight management said they were attempting to lose some weight. Girls were more likely to engage in weight loss activities. This trend is supported by recent studies. Women were more likely, Johnson, C.A., 2006, than boys to engage in weight-loss activities (62% girls versus 26% boys).

Body weight awareness, instead of just real Body mass index, has been shown to be a significant variable in weight regulation in research. The results of this analysis back up previous studies. And if just 20% of adolescents have quite a Body mass index over the 84th percentile mostly on relative scale had a Body mass index above the 85th percentile on the growth chart, Smith, G.D., 2008, a substantial portion (85%) of those who participated in weight-loss programs and thought they were overweight.

Female teenagers are more inclined to eat and partake in risky weight-loss behaviours than male adolescents, according to research. In the present survey, however, both male and female youth were similarly likely to manipulate food and use safe and inappropriate weight-loss strategies. To lose weight, high school students walked, cut back on fat consumption, and consumed more fruits and vegetables.

The weight-loss teens surveyed all displayed similar behaviours. Reduced calorie consumption (85%), exercise (81%), and eating vegetables and fruit were the three most widely practiced weight-loss behaviours (67%), Gillespie, C., 2008, More than half of the males and females said they cut down on the amount of foods they consumed at mealtimes (53% boys and 62% boys). Fasting and skipping meals as weight loss tactics were reported by just 12% and 5% of those surveyed, respectively.

Teenagers who said they were working to shed weight did not have a greater degree of physical exercise or a higher intake of fruits and vegetables than others. Despite the fact that the survey’s aim was not to examine the relationship between individuals’ recorded weight loss and habits, physical activity level, and fruits and vegetable consumption, it was discovered that those who reported exercise were comparatively inactive and did not follow the international guidelines for vegetables and fruits. This is in line with Nowak’s findings, which found little distinction in workout rate between Hong Kong teens who were attempting to lose weight and those that were not.

Youths all over the world are reporting a decrease in physical activity. The results show a similar trend, with 6.1 percent of respondents consistent with the international guidelines for physical exercise. There has been no distinction in levels of physical activity amongst participants who lost weight and those who did not lose weight. A total of 4% of weight-loss teenagers were involved for one hour per day, Story, M., 2009, In reality, 15% of weight-loss girls chose not to take at all, which may be attributed to body discomfort, which makes regular exercise difficult. The majority of weight-loss teenagers (97 percent) reported body disappointment in the sense that they thought they were overweight, which may explain their lack of physical exercise. The students in this study, like other teenage populations, had a poor consumption of fruits and vegetables.

There has been no disparity in vegetable and fruit eating patterns between those who seemed to be working to lose weight and those who did not. Just 3% of weight-loss students consumed the required 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. According to US statistics, 10-36% of schoolchildren and teenagers do not eat breakfast on a daily basis. In the present research, there was no difference in breakfast intake between weight-loss and non-weight-loss teens, indicating a common scenario.

Limitations

The study’s results revealed that Hong Kong teenagers’ perceptions of their body weight were unrelated to their Body Mass Index.

The answer given might be wrongly given that is its might be dishonest hence leading to a poor recommendation, hence making the actual and normal weight wrongly concluded.

The unanswered questions in the questionnaire might also lead to a poor impact or hinder the main objective of conductive the survey.

The questionnaire does not really convey what the right feels about the weight- loss that is it does not show the emotions accompanied by the research questions.

Sometimes those that are participating in conducting the research may have a hidden agenda hence may lead to causing of wrong interpretation of the data collected.

There is no personalization when answering the questionnaire hence it is likely to lead to poor surveying answers since one just answers because they have been convinced to answer and not because they want to.

The participants might not understand the question but will end up answering for the sake of it. Hence leading to poor statistics at the end of the survey.

The participants that might be willing to participate in the survey might not be reached by the questionnaire since the questionnaire might not be easily available to them hence leading to only a few people that can access the questionnaire participating.

The conducting of this research to find out which is the actual weight a normal individual should weigh has been quite epic because most people perceive different weight to be the normal weight.

 

Recommendations

From my research I would recommend that people or those that are between the age brackets of (15-45) should ensure they focus on their health. But one should not over do the exercise.  Unless someone is overweight or above the body mass index there is no need to do the physical exercises.

Skipping meals is not recommended especially to our growing teenagers, Metzl, J.D., 2005, who tend to practise the weight loss control. I think it is healthier to maintain a balanced diet rather than skipping meals for the sake of being more masculine and slender to copy the social medic personnel.

Those people with obesity should work outs everyday but at the same time they should not overdo the physical activities since overdoing can cause other negative effect. Someone suffering from obese should work towards ensuring that there are all following the instructions from the nutritionist and following the prescribed medicine.

The reason why females tend to perceive themselves overweight, Sempos, C.T., 2005, is because girls are more concerned with their physical appearance and hence you might find them overdoing the exercises despite of them viewing warned against it.

The female gender should know that the work out practices are only recommended when someone is overweight or suffering from obesity. Hence there is no need of observing some balanced diet when someone is physically fit. Hence the weight loss should be controlled.

From my research I would also recommend that one tries to only compare their weight with the body mass index and not with their perceived weight, Gorber, B., 2007. One should focus let the media personality of the people shown in the television deter him or her from just being comfortable with their body.

 

Recommendations to have a wealthy weight

It is recommended to stay exercise regularly, Lippke, S., 2014, if one needs to maintain a healthy weight he or she should not exercise daily but once in a while that is more regularly. Like for example should set target to exercise at least 150 minutes to 250 minutes per week.

I would also recommend that one practices the act of taking their breakfast daily and youths avoid the practise of not taking their breakfast often.

From my research I would also recommend that people drink a lot of water that has one should stay hydrated, Parish, L.C., 2010, always he or she can opt to also take other calories but ensure their body is hydrated.

One should ensure they maintain a healthy diet that is there is need of following the diet prescribed to them one should always ensure he or she takes a balanced diet and should avoid the junky foods.

It is highly recommended that if one wants to maintain a healthy body weight, Irwin, J.D., 2009, they should learn to plan their meals on time. That is if one can afford they should consider buying the cooking bookies to guide them in us to prepare for themselves balanced meals.

One should be engaging in regular activities that can help them avoid accumulation of fats in their body weight hence is highly recommended to main a body weight one should ensure their engage more on some other activities.

An individual should learn to supervise themselves that is one should be accountable for his or her body weight, Lavie, C.J., 2015, because even if they don’t know one else will, hence one should always check their weight regularly and always restrict themselves from repeating a habits that they had already stopped. It is also important that an individual keeps record of the foods he or she has consumed and just keep on exercising to ensure they maintain the body weight.

I would also highly recommend that one socializes or joins a management program for body weight. That is engagement with other people who are doing the same as you are more beneficial and can lead to success that will last for a long time.

I understand exercising can be boring hence I would recommend that you invite a friend or family member to do what you do with them. Show them how important the exercise and they will eventually join you. Hence it is important to create a team.

It is also important to have positivity and a trust in oneself when doing the exercise. Because not every day is similar to another hence it is important to ensure that you remain positive hence one should have the knowledge of how to pick themselves up and keep doing the work out practices without ever giving up.

It is important to see the long term. A diet is just a temporary weight-loss plan or tool. Long-term modifications must be taken in order to maintain the weight loss, and Proietto, J., 2011. Reconsider your past eating patterns and recognize the ones that contributed to your excess weight. Evaluate everything you consume, what you feed it, why you consume it, where you consume it, and how you ingest it.

Make the appropriate improvements to lead a healthier consuming routine. For example, did you ever over eat while watching TV in the family room late at night? If this is the case, make a conscious effort to avoid feeding in front of the two or even in the living room. Rather, feed only at the dining table.

Switch slowly and steadily. Make one little adjustment at a time that you will build into your new way of life. Schedule another improvement after you’ve perfected it. The more people can hold a new weight, the better it gets, according to studies. You’ll be effective if you take one action at a time.

Leave the certainties out. Avoid using terms like “never,” “still,” or “must.” Be honest with yourself and prepare for occasional indulgences. You ought to be free to partake in your favorite foods without feeling uncomfortable about it. You should incorporate smaller amounts of higher-calorie ingredients into your new eating habits. Rather than focusing on just what you can’t get, savor can slice.

Schedule a consultation with a licensed dietitian Create a consultation with a licensed nutritionist if you need dietary input from a professional. He or she will provide advice and steer you in the right direction for a healthier lifestyle.

Maintain your good eating habits. You’ve worked very hard to get to this stage. When new situations emerge, keep checking your priorities.

 

Conclusion

In general, we can conclude that from the research girls tend to over exaggerate their weight unlike boys, McCartney, C.R., 2010, female always view their body as being overweight or underweight that is because most tend to aim at reaching the body size of someone they idealize.

Also you will find that most people aim at reducing three body size because of the criticism there facing due to their weight. That is when someone is overweight he or she is likely to suffer from low sled esteem do to how people are making fun of his body hence most teenagers choose to be slender renter than having a normal weight.

In general, there is also a bigger gap between the perceived body weight and the actual body mass index, Moore, L., 2005, People are encouraged to work towards achieving a body mass index rather than trying to reach an image that they actualize.

Body composition perception differed by gender, with far more female teens overestimating their body height. Teenagers who thought they were overweight participated in weight-loss exercises such as yoga and lowering fat consumption, which were the two most widely recorded weight-loss measures in both genders.

In general questions posed on the questionnaire were meant to evaluate why the teenagers and the youths below the age of 45 find it important to exercise regularly even when there are okay. Why is it important to do the excise regularly when one is also physically fit?

In addition, the research conducted was to help in knowing why work out practices is recommended to the obese people and those that are overweight’s. And why thy those that are underweight may have negative impact from doing the exercise regularly.

Given the high incidence of body weight misperception among teens and the likelihood that body weight awareness motivates weight management behaviours, Bernsen, R.M., 2010, schools and health organizations can promote positive body image perception and healthy eating. Since the media has such a strong influence on how people perceive their body weight, it can be used to spread healthful messages.

The representative sample of this analysis is a significant flaw, since it could not be inclusive of all teenagers. Furthermore, the participants’ socio and economic status was not taken into account. Future research should take into account the above, as it has an effect on body appearance and body fat habits.