Prevalence of body dissatisfaction among a United States adult sample

Body dissatisfaction (BD) is a primary determinant of eating disorders and has been linked to chronic disease via decreased likelihood of cancer screening self-exams and smoking cessation. Yet, there are few recent estimates of the prevalence of BD among United States adults. Using an internet-based, opt-in, cross-sectional survey, United States adults (N = 1893) completed assessments of demographic variables, body areas satisfaction, appearance evaluation, fitness evaluation, health evaluation, and overweight preoccupation. Results revealed that the range of BD is 13.4%-31.8% among women and 9.0%-28.4% among men. Compared to previous assessments of prevalence (1973, 1986, 1995, 1997), the prevalence of BD among United States adults may have plateaued or declined over time.