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Body Image Blues
Originally Published: May 25, 2007
Revised: Oct 4, 2010
Do I look fat?
Yuck—my thighs look disgusting.
I think I'm going to start my diet today.
While trying on clothes in a fitting room, I overheard these statements by girls. Sound familiar? Of course they do, because at one time or another many girls become self-conscious about their bodies.
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They can also develop a negative self-image based on their body size, and an obsession with losing weight. This can lead to depression, eating disorders or abnormal eating patterns, like skipping meals, eating only certain items, and excessively avoiding certain foods. In fact, more than 90 percent of the millions affected with eating disorders are girls and young women.
Poor Body Image and Self-Esteem
Why do so many girls struggle with poor body image and self-esteem?
“Girls’ insecurities stem from numerous sources,” says Andrea Bastiani Archibald, Ph. D., research scientist for the Girls’ Health & Development Project at Columbia University’s Center for Children and Families. “They compare their own bodies to those presented as ’ideal’ in the media. They observe parents and friends who are critical of their own bodies, and they get direct criticism or teasing from family and peers.”
According to Archibald, a girl can be greatly influenced by an adult family member or friend who models negative behavior—like an older sister who constantly says, “My arms are so flabby!” or “If I eat this cookie, it’ll land right on my fat thighs.”
The Power of the Media
Fourteen-year-old Marcella Leath, of San Francisco, CA, believes that unrealistic images of women in the media have a negative influence on girls. Leath once had a poor self-image because of her body.
“In 7th grade, I’d catch myself saying ‘Oh, my gosh, I can’t sit like that. It makes my thighs look huge!’” remembers Leath. Then she became a youth advocate for About-Face, a San-Francisco-based media literacy organization focused on the impact mass media has on the well being of women and girls.
“There’s no way that media images don’t influence your self-esteem. The only way to escape the media is by living in a hole,” she says. “Every model that you see represents a minority of women in our society, and most photos of women's bodies have been altered by a computer.”
The media’s favorite images are skinny models. Everywhere you look there are commercials, billboards and magazines filled with them. These models—along with half-dressed females in music videos and constant dieting advertisements—all contribute to the idea that thinner is better.
But the skinny model body is unrealistic. Most female models are thinner than 98 percent of American women, according to Eating Disorders Awareness and Prevention (EDAP), in Seattle. The average American woman is 5 feet 4 inches tall, and weighs 140 pounds. But the average American model is 5 feet 11 inches tall, and weighs 117 pounds, states EDAP. Still, the media promotes thinness as “ideal” beauty.
“The media knows nothing about beauty,” says Leath. “Beauty can’t be bought or sold. It can’t be made by any product. It comes from you. Look deep inside, we all have it.”
Finding That Beauty
Many girls find it difficult to accept their bodies and find inner confidence. But learning to do this helps build positive self-esteem.
How can you start loving your body and self?
“Learn what ‘normal’ looks like, and actively seek positive images in the media,” suggests Archibald. “Exercise regularly and eat a balanced diet. Set an example for peers and younger people by showing positive feelings and behaviors about your body. And find out what you like best about yourself—related to your body or not—and remind yourself of that everyday.”
Editors’ Note: To learn more, visit Eating Disorders Awareness and Prevention, Inc. or call their information and referral line at 1-800-931-2237. You can also visit the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders or call their hotline at 1-847-831-3438.
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