On November 5, 2016, I was babysitting for a coworker of my mom's. These children were fairly young. We were sitting at the table eating dinner, which was pizza. The older child, a boy at the age of 7, wasn’t eating all of his pizza. He had only 2 slices on his plate that were about ½ of the size of a normal price of pizza. The little boy looked at me and said, “I don't want this, it's not in my diet.” when I asked him why he felt that he had to be on a diet he said, “because I'm fat.” But there was a problem, this little boy was far from fat. He is thin and fairly tall. But still, “80% of children who are 10 years old are afraid of being fat (Armstrong).” This can be caused by many reasons.
Being involved in sports is great for you as a whole. You get to be in shape, make new friends, compete, and have fun. Occasionally there are cons to being in a sport. In sports you are encouraged to be thin, or be at a specific weight. If you are not at that weight, or don't have the exact body type, it can make athletes feel self conscious and will cause devoted athletes to take any measure to look how they need to look. “Dancers are one such example. Ballet dancers must meet strict requirements for weight and body shape and therefore they think about how they appear. The current ideal body is one that is long and lean. Dancers, therefore, do everything possible to look long and lean. Garner and others reported that 25% of 35 professional ballet students in the Canadian Ballet School had developed anorexia nervosa and 14% had developed bulimia nervosa (Casper, Reed).” Anorexia Nervosa is an eating disorder where you refuse to eat, and Bulimia Nervosa is also an eating disorder where you overeat, this is then followed it fasting, self-induced vomiting, and depression. “Although the stronger, more muscular body can facilitate sport performance, some female athletes feel that it is a disadvantage with regard to attaining/maintaining society’s thin ideal (Thompson).” ”Research indicates that female athletes in judged sports have a 13 percent prevalence of eating disorders, compared to just 3 percent in the general population (Staff of Timberline Knolls).”
Nowadays most kids and teens have access to the internet, social media, and magazines. They are constantly exposed to seeing the stick thin models with the makeup that has been caked on like they are barbie dolls. These models are being admired by kids and teens. They are considered “beautiful.” This not only makes kids and teens that are at a healthy weight feel inferior to them, but it also makes kids and teens unhappy with their own body. “Of American elementary school girls who read magazines, 69% say that the pictures influence their concept of the ideal body shape. 47% say the pictures make them want to lose weight ("Get The Facts On Eating Disorders." NEDA. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.).” Models on social media and magazines also have a larger effect on teenagers. “69% of girls in 5th – 12th grades reported that magazine pictures influenced their idea of a perfect body shape (Strickland)”
As a kid and teen, no matter what school you go to, there is always going to be bullying and judgement. Whether it's on the clothes you wear, or the color of your skin. This has a large effect on kids and teens self esteem and body image. “The reasons for being bullied reported most often by students were looks (55%), body shape (37%), and race (16%). ("Bullying Statistics." PACER's National Bullying Prevention Center. N.p., 15 Jan. 2016. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.)” For some reason kids and teens still think it is okay to put others down to make them feel higher. Just because a student doesn't look or act the same as them. “84% of students observed students perceived as overweight being called names or getting teased during physical activities. ("Bullying Statistics." PACER's National Bullying Prevention Center. N.p., 15 Jan. 2016. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.)” “90% of 4th through 8th graders report being victims of bullying. ("11 Facts About Bullying." Do Something. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.)” These statistics show that kids and teens not only think bullying is okay, but they also think that it is fun.
Negative body image can cause major issues and habits that are harmful to your health. Having a negative body image can lead to eating disorders such as Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. This is very dangerous to your health. “This can lead to muscle loss and weakness, high or low blood pressure, reduction of bone density, heart and kidney failure, and even in extreme case, death. ("Health Consequences of Eating Disorders." NEDA. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.)” “Among high school students, 44% of girls and 15% of guys are attempting to lose weight. ("11 Facts About Teens and Self Esteem." Do Something. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.)” Not only does it cause dangerous eating habits, but it also contributes to depression. “Depression increases a teen’s risk for attempting suicide by 12 times. ("Teen Depression." I Need A LightHouse. N.p., 2015. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.)” “30 percent of teens with depression also develop a substance abuse problem. ("Teen Depression." I Need A LightHouse. N.p., 2015. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.)”
All in all many factors affect a kids and teens body image. From the models in magazines, to the judgement at their own schools. Kids are unable to be comfortable and confident with themselves.
- Armstrong, Stephanie J. "Statistics on Body Image, Self Esteem & Parental Influence." Heart of Leadership. N.p., 5 June 2011. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.
- Caper, Regina C., and Ellen Reed. "Statistics on Body Image, Self Esteem & Parental Influence." Body- and Self-Image in College Athletes. N.p., 1998. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.
- Thompson, Ron A. "Athletes and Body Image Issues." Eating Disorder Hope. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.
- Staff of Timberline Knolls. "Girls Gymnastics: When a Bright Spotlight Casts a Dark Shadow." Eating Disorder Hope. N.p., 8 July 2012. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.
- Strickland, Jennifer. "Self Image/Media Influences." Just Say Yes. N.p., 2015. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.
- "Get The Facts On Eating Disorders." NEDA. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2016.
Hi Jaidyn, it sounds like the issue of “Body Image in Kids in Teens,” is something that you feel very passionate about. I appreciate your viewpoint and I understand why you feel the way you do about the subject you discussed, however my view on the topic contradicts with yours. If your topic was limited explicitly to the topic of eating disorders, then I would agree with you 100% that eating disorders need to be prevented and treated and that we need to steer kids and teens away from eating disorders. However, since your topic explored body image and the negative effects it has on kids and teens, I would like to showcase my opinion as I disagree with some of the material you discussed. I think the idea of “Body Image” can have powerful, positive effects. I think it is important for anyone at any age to be aware of the body. The body is a beautiful, sculptable, ever changing form. It is something that you possess that is quite contrary from something such as, say your eye color. Your eye color is set in stone, it’s something that has to do with genetics, and as for now we can not alter the color or appearance of our eyes (besides the use of colored contacts). But our bodies are so much different, yes when you stop growing in height, you remain the same height, but your weight is something you can manipulate and change. America has a serious obesity problem, many people do not consider their weight and are not mindful of their bodies and their sizes. Perhaps this is also a reason why kids and teens are so mindful of their body shapes, because they witness obesity and they are aware of the limits obesity puts on people. I think it is important that the celebrities that teens and kids look up to are healthy and slim, I think if many kids looked up to someone who had an unhealthy body weight, then they would feel more encouraged to look like them and behave like them. If people are overweight, their health can be in jeopardy, many diseases and illnesses come with excess fat. I think it’s important that kids and teens embrace who they are today and love themselves as they experience their journey and health and avoid settling on how they look, if it’s unhealthy and changeable. There’s the idea floating around the internet that “If you love yourself then it’s okay to eat an entire pizza by yourself,” and I just don’t agree with that. I think kids and teens need role models who promote self acceptance but also push kids to eat right and exercise. I think a big problem is that kids and teens are uneducated. They don’t know how to properly take care of their bodies. That’s when issues like anorexia and bulimia enter someone’s life. If someone develops a disorder like these, it may be because they are unhappy with the way they look and they are looking to make a change in their appearance. These people either haven’t been educated or they’re ignoring that there are other ways to slim down and achieve the body shape that they’re looking for. It’s important to start teaching people from a young age how to take care of themselves, so they don’t gain weight and so they don’t develop unhealthy disorders. But focusing back on your topic, I think that body image can be a good thing. Instead of someone being happy with the way they look, but then settling with it, people should chase after what they’re capable of. I think body image can motivate people to change. It gives them a competitive outlook such as, “if she looks that way, there’s no reason I should look like this.” We just need to educate people on how to get to where they want to be in safe and effective matters.
ReplyDeleteI think sports are terrific. I don’t think someone who is overweight should avoid joining a sport because everyone else on the team is slimmer than them, so they’ll feel bad about themselves. Yes, they have the chance of feeling bad about themselves, but if they feel that way, then they may decide they want to stop feeling that way and therefore they would be motivated to take better care of themselves. And if someone is playing sports is overweight, then they’re likely to lose weight through playing sports, whereas if they avoided playing sports because they feel poorly about themselves, they may continue to gain weight. There’s no way that I think bullying is acceptable or okay in any matter. Our first priority should be to educate kids not to be bullies and to avoid picking on others. But we also should educate the bullied on how to deal with being bullied. We need to teach children not to unwind into a puddle of self doubt and self hate, but to analyze the situation and take care of themselves and stand up for themselves. Also, although I don’t think bullying is okay, there have been lots of success stories from slim athletes that follow a storyline of “Yes, I used to be overweight, but I was tired of hearing rude remarks about my size so I decided to transform my life,” and those people are so grateful that they did so. I’m also not saying that people should change because of what others say or think about them, but I think it’s empowering when someone who is being bullied decides that they aren’t going to deal with the poor treatment anymore. Also, I think it was powerful of you to open your blog post with a personal experience that defines why you feel the way you do about this subject. But, I don’t think it was fair of you to criticize the boy for being on a diet. A diet means you have your health and weight in mind. I understand where your concern would be if the boy was avoiding all foods and barely eating. But in this case, I object to your judgement about him. The food he was eating was pizza, pizza is not a healthy food and has little nutritional value. Maybe the boy knows that pizza is unhealthy, and is trying to only eat healthy foods. I don’t know, do you? The point is we shouldn’t make judgements on other people's situations without first diving deeper into their perspective. Also, it is important to educate young people to be aware of the foods they’re eating and how much they’re eating, but it’s also important to explain to them why they need to eat. A young person needs food to grow and develop and they need food for energy. They need to understand that not everything they eat is going to turn into fat, but food actually heals the body and plays such an important role in a human life. They also need to keep in mind their age and the age of the people they are comparing themselves to. For example, it doesn’t make sense for a 13 year old girl to try to achieve the body of a 22 year old supermodel, at 13 years old she should still maybe chubby, and she shouldn’t be sexy the way the supermodel is or expect that if she eats like the supermodel then her body will look like hers, because her body isn’t at that same stage. As, she is young and still growing she shouldn’t really be thinking about how to have toned abs, but should be focusing on taking care of herself, as her body is still developing. In my opinion, it’s important to always be mindful of your body so you can take care of yourself, but it is equally important to be educated on how to take care of your body.
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