在我們的身邊，經常能聽到女孩子對自己身材不夠標致的抱怨和對曲線藝術的向往。而實際上，那些整天嚷嚷著減肥的姑娘本身并不像她們以為的那樣無可救藥。在美國的很多地方，真正肥胖的人卻往往對自己的體重視而不見，或者不認為自己是胖子。不胖的人鬧著減肥，肥胖的人卻不以為然，這種現象是不是很有趣？

    Ninety percent of Americans know that most of their compatriots are overweight, but just 40 percent believe themselves to be too fat, according to a study published on Tuesday.

    Government statistics show that more that 60 percent of the U.S. population is overweight, and half is obese, meaning they are at serious risk of health effects from their weight.

    But the Pew Research Center telephone survey of more than 2,000 adults found that many people overestimate how tall they are and underestimate how much they weigh--and thus do not rate themselves are overweight, even when they are.

    "The survey finds that most Americans, including those who say they are overweight, agree that personal behavior--rather than genetic disposition or marketing by food companies--is the main reason people are overweight," Pew says in the report.

    "In particular, the public says that a failure to get enough exercise is the most important reason, followed by a lack of willpower about what to eat. About half the public also says that the kinds of foods marketed at restaurants and grocery stores are a very important cause, and roughly a third say the same about the effect of genetics and heredity."

    And at least some people appear to have given up on dieting to control their weight, the survey found.

    "One in four respondents in our survey say they are currently dieting, and roughly half (52 percent) say they have dieted at some point in their lives. In a poll taken 15 years ago, the percentage of adults who reported having ever dieted was slightly higher--57 percent," the report reads.

    The adults polled were asked how tall they are and how much they weigh. Doctors and researchers around the world use a ration of height to weight called body mass index to calculate if someone is obese or overweight.

    The women reported they weighed a median of 150 pounds and had a median height of 5 feet five inches, which would put them just barely on the borderline of being overweight.

    But national statistics indicate that U.S. women in fact have a median weight of 155 pounds and are only 5 feet 4 inches tall, which puts them squarely into the overweight column.

    "As for men, well, they give themselves even more phantom height than women do--two extra inches," the report reads. "The self-reported median height of men in the Pew survey is 5 feet 11 inches, compared with 5 feet 9 inches in the government survey."

    "Virtually everyone agrees that a person's weight has an impact on the chances for a long and healthy life," the report reads. "More than nine-in-ten (91 percent) believe that weight has an impact on attractiveness, either a little (35 percent) or a lot (56 percent)."

    本周二公布的一項調查報告顯示，有多達90％的美國人認為他們的大部分同胞都超重，但只有40％的人承認自己胖。

    美國政府的統計數字顯示，有超過60％的美國人超重，有一半美國人處于肥胖狀態，這意味著眾多美國人都處在一種健康隱患之中。

    美國皮尤研究中心對2000多名美國成年人進行了一項電話調查。調查結果顯示，很多美國人都過高估計了自己的身高，同時低估了自己的體重，即便他們確實超重了，他們也并不覺得自己胖。

    調查報告中寫道：“調查發現，大多數美國人，其中包括那些認為自己超重的人，都認為個人行為習慣而非遺傳或其他因素是造成超重的最主要原因。”

    報告說，大多數被調查者都指出，缺乏足夠的體育鍛煉是其中最主要的原因，其次是缺乏控制飲食的意志力。另外，大約還有一半的被調查者還表示，在餐館和食品店中出售的食物種類也是一個非常重要的因素。還有大約三分之一的人認為基因及遺傳因素從中起作用。

    調查顯示，至少有些人為了控制體重開始采取了節食的做法。

    “有四分之一的被調查者表示他們目前正在節食，還有大約一半的人（52％）表示他們曾經采取過節食這種做法。在15年前的一項相關調查中，表示有過節食做法的成年人的比率要稍高一些，為57％。”

    研究人員和醫護者向這些參與調查的人詢問其身高和體重，然后計算出他們的身體質量指數，以衡量其是否超重或肥胖。

    按照這些女性被調查者的表述，她們的平均體重為150磅，平均身高為5英尺5英寸，這讓她們正處于超重的邊緣。

    但國家統計數字顯示，美國婦女實際上的平均體重為155磅，平均身高為5英尺4英寸，這樣算出的身體質量指數則不折不扣地屬于超重范圍。

    對于美國成年男性來說，他們對自己身高的評價則要比女性更加“樂觀”一些——他們對自己身高的評價整整多出了2英寸。皮尤研究中心的調查中，美國男人自我報告的平均身高為5英尺11英寸，而政府部門的調查則顯示為5英尺9英寸。

    報告說，事實上每個人都承認人的體重對于壽命和健康的影響。超過9/10的人（91%）承認體重對外形吸引力的影響，35%的人認為影響較小，而有56%的人認為有很大影響。