You Are What You Eat: Gender, Race, Childhood Abuse, and Body Image among Adolescents.

The research presented in this paper examines the influences of race, gender, and sexual or physical abuse on unhealthy eating and dieting practices among Black and White adolescents. Specifically, the project considers the intersection of race and gender on actual body size and perceived body size. The impact of past sexual or physical abuse emerges as a significant predictor of unhealthy dieting and eating behaviors for Whites but not for Blacks. While girls are more likely to have distorted body images and to engage in disordered eating and dieting, these differences are further explained with race and past sexual or physical abuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]