ABSTRACT
In modern Western society the issues of body weight and shape are of central importance for most females from adolescence onward. Although weight remains a health issue for all people, body image and attractiveness have particular importance to women. The first part of this chapter focuses on the special place weight and body shape occupy in a woman's life. The second part of this chapter reviews the mechanisms of weight control—both biological and sociocultural—and some of the causes of weight disregulation and the resulting disorders—anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and obesity. The chapter concludes with directions for future research.
