Self-perception of weight, physical condition, and health-related behaviors in male Japanese bus drivers

The management of body weight and lifestyle habits is important for the maintenance of health in working people. Accurate self-perception of weight status is thought to be an important aspect of maintaining ideal body weight and successful obesity or leanness-related disease prevention and management. Overweight and underweight are dominant risk factors for noninfectious chronic diseases, also called noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). NCDs have recently become important targets for health interventions worldwide. According to the Global Status Report on Noncommunicable Diseases 2014, NCDs account for 68% of deaths worldwide. Many studies have found that most NCDs are associated with unhealthy lifestyle habits, such as unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, smoking, and excessive alcohol consumption . In Japan, the incidence of NCDs is increasing because more people are becoming overweight or underweight, resulting in a major public health problem. Middle-aged and elderly populations are often overweight and young women are likely to be underweight. A 2013 study found that >30% of men aged 40–69 years old were overweight, and 21.5% of women aged 20–29 years old were underweight. During the second term of the National Health Promotion Movement in the 21 Century (Health Japan 21 [second term]), goals will be established for maintaining ideal body weight, eating a healthy diet, exercising routinely, and increasing physical activity. Body weight is an easy measurement for people to monitor themselves. The ability to recognize and maintain an ideal body weight is important for preventing many NCDs. Previous studies on ideal body weight and body image have focused on children or adolescent females , but few of these studies have addressed male workers. Few studies have focused on BMI and on weight self-perception in the working population , and our review of the literature found none that examined the relationship between weight perception and lifestyle habits. We investigated weight self-perceptions and health-related behaviors of male Japanese bus drivers and described the impact of weight perception and lifestyle on their physical condition and health problems.