Appearance Investment, Quality of Life, and Metabolic Control Among Women with Type 1 Diabetes

Background: Concomitants of Type 1 diabetes management include weight gain and dietary restraint. Body image concerns, particularly among women, are therefore common. Purpose: The study evaluated associations between the appearance investment component of body image, age, quality of life and self-reported metabolic control were examined, along with the practice of insulin restriction as a weight control strategy. Method: A questionnaire comprising demographic and diabetes-related information, the Appearance Schemas Inventory, and Diabetes Quality of Life Brief Clinical Inventory was completed by Australian women diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (N = 177). Results: Self-evaluative salience was higher among younger participants, those with a lower quality of life, and those with better metabolic control of their diabetes, with the relationships between metabolic control and all of age, quality of life, and self-evaluative salience noted to be non-linear. Among participants who reported restricting insulin for weight control, self-evaluative salience was particularly relevant. Motivational salience was not related to other study variables. Conclusion: Clinically, the provision of information regarding appearance changes that might arise in order to mitigate later body image difficulties is a potentially beneficial adjunct to standard diabetes management protocols that may lead to more successful disease adjustment.