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More women worry about their weight than cancer, according to a survey carried out by Dorling Kindersley. The findings – collected to coincide with the publication of Women’s Health for Life – reveal that by far the biggest health issue concerning women throughout the UK is their weight.

Did you know that...?

One in four women’s main health concern is their weight

One in four women cited weight related issues as their main worry, with 50% of women in their 20s, 30s and 40s worrying about their weight above all other health issues. Only one in ten women in their 70s have cited weight as their second health concern (13%), after ageing (31%).

One in five young women worries about being stressed

Another major health concern for British women is stress, which came third in the list of health issues women worry about the most (after weight and ageing). This seems to be a problem particularly for women in their 20s, with one in five identifying stress as their biggest health worry. Women in their 60s and 70s, however, didn’t see this as their main concern; instead they were found to be more worried about ageing, with 26% of women in their 60s and 31% of 70 year olds citing this as their main health concern.

Scottish women are most worried about depression

Overall, the highest number of women concerned about depression came from Scotland (13.3%) and the majority of these women were in their 20s (11.4%).

Women are not concerned about heart disease

Worryingly, only 1% of women ranked cardiovascular disease (CVD) as a main health concern. Recent research into gender-specific medicine is revealing that more women than men die each year of CVD than from any other cause, including all types of cancer. However, these results suggest that women across all ages don’t see this as a major health fear.

Women aren’t worried about HIV and AIDS

No one mentioned HIV or AIDS as a health worry and less than 1% overall cited STDs as their main health concern. When asked about sex education, 11% of all women revealed that they were never taught it. Of these, one in three women in their 70s never received any sex education, whereas 36% of women in their 20s were given sex education lessons under the age of 12.

No worries about diabetes

Diabetes ranked fairly low, with only 3% of women citing this as a main worry. 8% of women in their 60s did, however, list this as their main health concern and the numbers increased slightly to 4% as a secondary health worry.

Only 50% of women turn to their GP first

When asked who women turn to first for their main source of medical information, 50% of women reported that they turn to their GP, increasing to 69% amongst women in their 50s. Less than one in three women in their 20s would turn to their doctor as the first point of call, preferring to use the internet (39%). Women in their 40s are also more likely to use the internet for medical advice about a health concern (43%). Interestingly, more than one in five women in their 70s also revealed that they would choose to use the internet for health information rather than going to their GP.

77% of women trust their doctor

77% of women overall trust their GP with their health concerns. When asked how much women trust medical treatment, 72% of women across all regions and age ranges trust traditional medicine more than complementary medicine. Surprisingly though, 17% of women were found not to trust either form of medicine! Women in their 20s are most likely to trust complementary medicine (18%), falling to just 7% amongst women in their 60s.

Notes

• The survey was commissioned by Dorling Kindersley and conducted by online research company The ID Factor between 08/12/2008 - 15/12/2008
• 1,122 women in the UK across six generations responded to the survey
• The survey coincided with the launch of Women’s Health For Life (published 2nd January 2009 by DK) the first book to be published on women’s health that includes every health issue that concerns women, rather than focusing solely on reproduction and fertility. Covering everything from mental health, the heart, the brain, bones and joints and breast health, this comprehensive guide illustrates the fascinating and surprising ways in which sex differences affect the diagnosis and treatment of every common disease.