ROLE models such as Beyonce and size 14 model Ashley Graham have made women more accepting of their extra pounds than three decades ago, a study shows.

Despite growing obesity rates and a culture obsessed with selfies, dissatisfaction with a well rounded figure is on the decline, say scientists.

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Psychologist Dr Bryan Karazsia is “cautiously optimistic.” His findings represent a positive change in the social pressures women face over body image and diversity.

He said: “The last two decades have witnessed increasing attention and awareness on a body acceptance movement aimed primarily at girls and women.”

That, combined with increased media visibility of role models who run counter to the trend towards thinness, may, in part, help explain the findings, an American Psychological Association meeting in Denver was told.

Dr Karazsia, of The College of Wooster, Ohio, said: “While women consistently report being more dissatisfied with their bodies than men as far as thinness is concerned, that dissatisfaction has decreased over the 31-year period we studied.”

He said body dissatisfaction is not only a common predictor of eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa and binge eating, but also can play a role in the development of depression.

Research conducted in the 1990s suggested that the percentage of women who were unhappy with their weight was on the rise.

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So his team pooled data from more than 250 studies representing 100,228 participants from 1981 to 2012, to analyse trends in how people felt about their bodies, specifically in regard to weight.

They found while women consistently were more dissatisfied than men, this gradually declined over time while men’s remained relatively constant.