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Background: Studies on the effect of weight on quality of life provide conflicting results. The purpose of the research was to assess the interconnection between the anthropometric variables and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in a community-based sample of schoolchildren and to establish the role of body dissatisfaction (BD) in this association. Methods: A number of tenth-year schoolchildren (n = 413) completed a questionnaire making it possible to describe their sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics and assess body satisfaction and HRQoL (PedsQL 4.0, France). The hypothesis of BD as reflecting the relationship between anthropometric variables and HRQoL was tested using the logistic regression method. Results: No significant correlation was found between BMI and integral HRQoL scores. Waist circumference showed a significant negative correlation with the HRQoL scores in the girls, but not in the boys. The frequency of BD was 60.3% (n = 249). The relationship between BD and anthropometric variables proved to be differently directed in the boys and the girls. BD had a significant negative correlation with psychosocial and total HRQoL scores in adolescents of both sexes and with the girls' physical functioning scores. The relationship between HRQoL and anthropometric indices in the girls, after making adjustment for sociodemographic, behavioral variables and BD in multivariate models, was no longer significant. Conclusion: This study has shown that BD is widespread among adolescents and has a significant impact on HRQoL. The impact of actual weight status on girls' quality of life is entirely mediated by their dissatisfaction with their own bodies, thus justifying the approach to BD as a stand-alone problem having important psychosocial implications and requiring active identification and targeted intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To evaluate whether the health‐related quality‐of‐life (HRQoL) scores would be different for adolescents with menstrual problems as compared to those with normal menstruation after taking into account clinical, socio‐demographic and life‐style factors. Methods: The Paediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 scale was used to assess HRQoL in 126 schoolgirls of 16 ± 0.4 years old. The adolescents completed semi‐structured questionnaires containing information on social and demographic characteristics, life‐style features and menstrual questionnaires that included the following: age of menstruation, menstrual cycle length, duration of production, the number of pads used per day, menstrual pain and drug administration to relieve dysmenorrhea. The menstrual problems were classified into three main groups: dysmenorrhoea, oligomenorrhoea, and heavy menstrual bleeding. Anthropometric measurements were performed by a physician. Medical history was obtained from school medical charts. Results: Ninety‐seven (77%) girls had menstrual problems. Dysmenorrhoea (n = 92, 73%) was the most frequent of these, followed by oligomenorrhoea (n = 13, 10.3%) and heavy menstrual bleeding (n = 6, 4.8%). Thirteen (10.3%) girls had combined disorders. A multivariate analysis adjusted for life‐style factors found an independent association of any menstrual problems, oligomenorrhoea and dysmenorrhoea with low HRQoL scores in the emotional functioning domain. For adolescents with oligomenorrhoea, an association with low total scale scores was also shown but it did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion: The prevalence of menstrual problems is high among schoolgirls. Medical professionals working with adolescents should know that girls with menstrual problems are highly likely to have a poor quality of life, especially those with oligomenorrhoea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]