Strategies used to reduce body weight by adult women in the municipality of Barbacena-MG
Abstract
Introduction: The pursuit of weight loss among adult women is primarily motivated by aesthetic and health-related reasons. Various strategies are adopted, often without professional guidance, which may pose health risks. Objective: To identify the strategies used for weight reduction among adult women in the municipality of Barbacena, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Materials and Methods: This is an observational, cross-sectional, and descriptive study conducted with adult women (aged 18–59) residing in Barbacena-MG. Participants were recruited by convenience using the snowball sampling technique and contacted via the WhatsApp messaging application. Data collection occurred between September 2022 and February 2023 through a digital questionnaire hosted on the Google Forms platform. Results: A total of 261 adult women participated in the study (mean age: 31.7 years). The sample was predominantly young, with 39.4% aged between 18 and 25 years, and mostly White (59.0%). Most participants were single (59.4%) and childless (57.1%). Regarding weight loss strategies, self-prescribed methods (48.4%) and advice from friends and family (30.1%) predominated, with most participants (49.8%) considering these strategies safe. The main reported reasons for weight loss were aesthetic (21.4%) and health-related (18.8%), with emphasis on the combination of healthy eating and physical activity (23.9%). Conclusion: Healthy eating and physical activity are the most commonly employed strategies for weight loss among women. However, risky practices-such as the use of medications and restrictive diets without professional guidance-were also observed.
References
-Associação Brasileira para o Estudo da Obesidade e da Síndrome Metabólica. Diretriz Brasileira de Obesidade. 4ª edição. São Paulo: ABESO. 2016. Disponível em: https://abeso.org.br/wp-content/uploads/2019/ 12/Diretrizes-Download-Diretrizes-Brasileiras-de-Obesidade-2016.pdf.
-Brasil. Ministério da Saúde. Orientações para a coleta e análise de dados antropométricos em serviços de saúde: Norma Técnica do Sistema de Vigilância Alimentar e Nutricional - SISVAN. Brasília: Ministério da Saúde; 2011. Disponível em: https://bvsms.saude.gov.br/bvs/publicacoe s/orientacoes_coleta_analise_dados_antropometricos.pdf.
-Brown, L.; Rose, K.; Campbell, A. Healthy plant‐based diets and their short‐term effects on weight loss, nutrient intake and serum cholesterol levels. Nutrition Bulletin. Vol. 47. Num. 2. 2022. p. 199-207.
-Christinelli, H.C.B.; Souza, J.M.S.; Costa, M.A.R.; Teston, É.F.; Borim, M.L.C.; Fernandes, C.A.M. Effectiveness of a dietary re-education and physical activity program on obesity. Revista Gaúcha de Enfermagem. Vol. 41. 2020. p. e20190213.
-Ferreira, A.P.S.; Szwarcwald, C.L.; Damacena, G.N. Prevalência e fatores associados da obesidade na população brasileira: estudo com dados aferidos da Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde, 2013. Revista Brasileira de Epidemiologia. Vol. 22. Num. e190024. 2019. p. e190024.
-Ferreira, K.D.; Fontenele, F.S.; Lima, J.W.R.; Silva, C.S. Dietas da moda: os riscos nutricionais que podem comprometer a saúde da mulher. Revista Liberum Accessum. Vol. 14. Num. 2. 2022. p. 116-125.
-Friedman, V.J.; Wright, C.J.C.; Molenaar, A.; McCaffrey, T.; Brennan, L.; Lim, M.S.C. The use of social media as a persuasive platform to facilitate nutrition and health behavior change in young adults: web-based conversation study. Journal of Medical Internet Research. Vol. 24. Num. 5. 2022. p. e28063.
-Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística. Censo Demográfico 2010. Disponível em: https://www.ibge.gov.br/estatisticas/sociais/populacao/9662-censo-demografico-2010.html? edicao=9666&t=sobre.
-Jaacks, L.M.; Vandevijvere, S.; Pan, A.; McGowan, C.J.; Wallace, C.; Imamura, F.; Swinburn, B.A.; Ezzati, M.; Popkin, B.M. The obesity transition: stages of the global epidemic. The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. Vol. 7. Num. 3. 2019. p. 231-240.
-Kim, J.Y Optimal Diet Strategies for Weight Loss and Weight Loss Maintenance. Journal of Obesity & Metabolic Syndrome. Vol. 30. Num. 1. 2021. p. 20-31.
-Leão, P.M.; Knopp, P.L.; Vale, C.C.S. Dietas da moda: impactos sobre a saúde física e psicossocial de mulheres jovens. Brazilian Journal of Development. Vol. 9. Num. 5. 2023. p. 15264-15275.
-Lobstein, T.; Brinsden, H.; Neveux, M. World Obesity Atlas 2022. World Obesity Federation. 2022. Disponível em: https://policycommons. net/artifacts/2266990/world_obesity_atlas_2022_web/3026660
-Locke, A.; Schneiderhan, J.; Zick, S.M. Diets for health: goals and guidelines. American Family Physician. Vol. 97. Num. 11. 2018. p. 721-728.
-Machado, E.C.; Silveira, M.F.; Silveira, V.M.F. Prevalence of weight-loss strategies and use of substances for weight-loss among adults: a population study. Cadernos de Saúde Pública. Vol. 28. Num. 8. 2012. p. 1439-1449.
-Martin, C.K.; Johnson, W.D.; Myers, C.A.; Apolzan, J.W.; Earnest, C.P.; Thomas, D.M.; Church, T.S. Effect of different doses of supervised exercise on food intake, metabolism, and non-exercise physical activity: The E-MECHANIC randomized controlled trial. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Vol. 110. Num. 3. 2019. p. 583-592.
-Martinelli, S.S.; Cavalli, S.B. Healthy and sustainable diet: a narrative review of the challenges and perspectives. Ciência & Saúde Coletiva. Vol. 24. Num. 11. 2019. p. 4251-4261.
-Medeiros, S.S.D.E.; Enes, C.C.; Nucci, L.B. Association of weight perception, body satisfaction, and weight loss intention with patterns of health risk behaviors in adolescents with overweight and obesity. Behavioral Medicine. Vol. 25. Num. 1. 2022. p. 1-10.
-Petridou, A.; Siopi, A.; Mougios, V. Exercise in the management of obesity. Metabolism. Vol. 92. 2019. p. 163-169.
-Pirotta, S.; Joham, A.; Hochberg, L.; Moran, L.; Lim, S.; Hindle, A.; Gibson, J.; Harrison, C. Strategies to reduce attrition in weight loss interventions: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Obesity Reviews. Vol. 20. Num. 10. 2019. p. 1400-1412.
-Ribeiro, J.P.; Maliszewski, L.S.; Martins, E.S.L. Técnica de amostragem “bola de neve virtual” na captação de participantes em pesquisas científicas. Journal of Nursing and Health. Vol. 14. Num. 1. 2024. p. e1426636.
-Samoylichenko, A.K. Early maladaptive schema and coping strategies of women pursuing weight loss. The European Proceedings of Social & Behavioural Sciences. 2022. p. 827-835.
-Sampaio, L.R.T.; Daltro, C.S.; Barbosa, J.S.; Santana, W.A.; Pereira, E.M.; Costa, J.S.; Oliveira, T.B. Estratégias de emagrecimento antes da cirurgia bariátrica. Revista Brasileira de Obesidade, Nutrição e Emagrecimento. Vol. 14. Num. 85. 2020. p. 184-190.
-Santos, C.M.; Azevedo, A.P.; Souza, É.L. A mulher em tripla jornada: discussão sobre a divisão das tarefas em relação ao companheiro. Revista Gestão & Conexões. Vol. 10. Num. 2. 2021. p. 103-121.
-Sauerbronn, J.F.R.; Teixeira, C.S.; Lodi, M.F. Saúde, estética e eficiência: relações entre práticas de consumo de alimentos, as mulheres e seus corpos. Cadernos EBAPE.BR. Vol. 17. Num. 2. 2019. p. 389-402.
-Silva, A.V.F.; Santos, L.B.; Queiroz, F.J.G. Os riscos do uso de medicações para o emagrecimento. Revista JRG. Vol. 5. Num. 11. 2022. p. 56-66.
-Silva, J.M.S.; Cardoso, V.C.; Abreu, K.E.; Silva, L.S. A feminização do cuidado e a sobrecarga da mulher-mãe na pandemia. Revista Feminismos. Vol. 8. Num. 3. 2021. p. 149-161.
-Silva, R.M.V.; Cesar, A.C.W.; Chiara, M.D.; Aguiar, G.F.; Carreiro, E.M.; Silva, J.C.; Oliveira, F.T. Análise de um programa de estratégias de emagrecimento multidisciplinar (afine-se) em pacientes obesos. Revista Brasileira de Obesidade, Nutrição e Emagrecimento. São Paulo. Vol. 13. Num. 78. 2019. p. 231-237.
-Silva, S.A.; Pires, P.F.F. A influência da mídia no comportamento alimentar de mulheres adultas. Revista Terra & Cultura: Cadernos de Ensino e Pesquisa. Vol. 35. Num. 69. 2019. p. 53-67.
-Simões, T.C.; Meira, K.C.; Santos, J.; Câmara, D.C.P. Prevalências de doenças crônicas e acesso aos serviços de saúde no Brasil: evidências de três inquéritos domiciliares. Ciência & Saúde Coletiva. Vol. 26. Num. 9. 2021. p. 3991-4006.
-Souza, A.P.; Oliveira, B.M.; Silva, E.F.L.; Rocha, G.S.; Almeida, A.C.G.; Brito, M.A.M. Atenção farmacêutica no uso indevido de medicamentos para emagrecimento: revisão sistemática. Research, Society and Development. Vol. 12. Num. 6. 2023. p. e10712642133.
-Teixeira, Y.; Almeida, P.T.; Marques, R.M.; Barreto, J.A.P.S.; Oliveira, F.G.S.; Silva, C.L.; Costa, R.B. Avaliação de diferentes técnicas para a perda de peso e redução do percentual de gordura corporal: uma revisão integrativa. Brazilian Journal of Health Review. Vol. 2. Num. 5. 2019. p. 4855-4865.
Copyright (c) 2025 Gislene da Silva Alonso, Claudiomiro da Silva Alonso, Rosimar Regina da Silva
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish in this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain the copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication, with work simultaneously licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License BY-NC which allows the sharing of the work with acknowledgment of the authorship of the work and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are authorized to enter into additional contracts separately for non-exclusive distribution of the version of the work published in this journal (eg, publishing in institutional repository or book chapter), with acknowledgment of authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are allowed and encouraged to post and distribute their work online (eg, in institutional repositories or on their personal page) at any point before or during the editorial process, as this can bring about productive change as well as increase impact and impact. citation of published work (See The Effect of Free Access).
