The study is based on data from the 2002 National Survey of
Family Growth that looked at sexual behavior of more than 7,000 women. Dr.
Bliss Kaneshiro, an assistant professor at the School
of Medicine at the University of Hawaii ,
was a student at Oregon
Health & Science University at the time.
Some studies have suggested that obese and overweight women have a higher risk of unintended pregnancy than do normal weight women, according to Kaneshiro. Although multiple factors, including contraceptive use and its efficacy, may increase the risk of unintended pregnancy among these women, sexual behavior and the frequency of intercourse could also be a factor.
Kaneshiro's objective was to study the impact of body mass
index on sexual behavior. It is important to understand this relationship
because preexisting physician biases can affect how heavy women are counseled
about pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases prevention. Kaneshiro studied
the relationship between body mass index and sexual behavior, including sexual
orientation, age at first intercourse, number of partners, and frequency of
intercourse.
"Our analysis demonstrated that obese and overweight
women do not differ significantly in some of the objective measures of sexual
behavior compared to women of normal weight," said Kaneshiro. "This
study indicates that all women deserve diligence in counseling on unintended
pregnancy and STD prevention, regardless of body mass index."
The study seems to contradict widely held stereotypes that
overweight and obese women are not as sexually active as other women. If
anything, the researchers concluded the opposite seems to be true.
"I was glad to see that the stereotype that you have to
be slender to have sex is just that, a stereotype," Harvey said.
Kaneshiro said the data showed that overweight women were
more likely to report having sexual intercourse with a man, even when she
controlled for age, race and type of residence. Ninety-two percent of
overweight women reported having a history of sexual intercourse with a man, as
opposed to 87 percent of women with a normal body mass index.
"These results were unexpected and we don't really know
why this is the case," Kaneshiro said.
"Some medical practitioners may not do appropriate
follow-up with women who are overweight, they might assume they aren't having
sex unless they are told otherwise," Harvey
said.
Other coauthors on the study include Jeffrey Jensen, Mark
Nichols and Alison Edelman of Oregon Health & Science University
and Nichole Carlson of the University
of Colorado Denver .
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