Gender expression impacts weight.

• Position: Body Mass Index

Masculine gender expression, or how much an individual conforms to masculine norms, is tied to higher body mass index (BMI) in youth, indicates a study in Obesity. The researchers, led by S. Bryn Austin of Boston (Mass.) Children's Hospital, found that societal pressures on young males to be larger than other boys their age may place them at higher risk for an increase in BMI.

"Because thinness is not consistent with dominant cultural standards of masculinity, young people who conform to masculine norms may be more likely than other youth to engage in unhealthy behaviors, such as high-calorie food consumption, overeating, and sedentary behaviors," explains Austin. 'While females who identify with being more masculine are at risk for a higher BMI than their more-feminine peers, males who identify as being masculine face a larger challenge: both higher BMI and more-rapid BMI gains."

The researchers also looked at sexual minorities (lesbians, gay men, bisexuals) compared to their heterosexual peers and found that sexual minority females, on average, had higher BMIs, whereas sexual minority males had lower BMIs. These results may be due in part...