Lesson 7.4 Having a Healthy Body Image

Last updated 4 months ago

13 questions

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Draggable item		Corresponding Item
body image		focus on what the body can do, rather than how it looks
disordered eating		feelings of acceptance, care, and kindness toward one’s body
weight stigma		thoughts and feelings about how one’s body looks
body compassion		mental illness that causes major disturbances in a person’s daily diet
body neutrality		appreciation of diverse body types
body positivity		range of irregular eating behaviors with negative health consequences
purging		attempts to rid the body of food
eating disorder		flawed belief that having a thinner body or lower weight is always better

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Factors Affecting Body Image
People are not born with a body image. A person’s body image develops over time. Factors such as social environment, media and society, race and ethnicity, and athletic activities influence it.

Social Environment
Your social environment—which includes the relationships in your life—influences body image. For example, family members can affect body image by valuing certain physical qualities. Friends also influence body image. To fit in with a peer group, young people may feel like they need to look a certain way.
Participation in social media can make pressure from peers worse. Many young people want approval from their friends and only post pictures in which they look good. Some young people even manipulate images using filters and retouching. As a result, young people may feel pressure to always look good and compare themselves to others.

Media and Society
Every day, people see messages communicating ideas about attractiveness. Advertisements associate certain physical traits with attractiveness, wealth, health, success, and happiness. Images in the media are different for female and male bodies. Many of these images are digitally edited and unrealistic.

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Female Bodies in the Media
Media images of celebrities, actors, and models often set unhealthy standards. In one study, women shown female silhouettes of different sizes thought the best body size according to other women was thinner than their own best body size. Women also thought the best female body size was thinner than men did. This flawed idea that having a thinner body or lower weight is always better is called weight stigma (Figure 7.36).

Media images of female bodies also set other unrealistic standards. Female bodies in the media may have large breasts and butts, long legs, a small waist, clear skin, little body hair, and perfectly styled light hair. In addition, advertisements and media images almost always show females who are young. Because of standards in the media, many girls and women have negative thoughts about their bodies.

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Male Bodies in the Media
Images of male bodies in the media also pressure men to conform to certain standards. In the media, images of male bodies have become increasingly tall and muscular. Many images of male bodies in the media show “six-pack” abdominals, muscular chests, and large biceps. Some also show very thin male bodies. As a result, men and boys may feel insecure about their height and figure.

Media images of male bodies also set standards for clear skin and full facial hair. The end result is that often-edited images set a standard that makes many boys and men feel badly about their bodies.

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Race and Ethnicity
Images and body types in the media and society reach people from all backgrounds. Unfortunately, media in the United States tends to show mostly Caucasian or light-skinned models. Even when showing different races or ethnicities, the media tends to emphasize light eyes, straight hair, and lack of curves. These traits are more common among Caucasian people.

Not all populations embrace the standards shown in the media to the same extent. Different groups have different values and preferences when it comes to appearance. For example, some research suggests that, compared with Caucasians, African-Americans are less likely to view a very thin female body as best. Research also suggests that people of Hispanic descent tend to value curves more than thinness.

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Athletic Activities
Another factor that can influence body image is involvement in some athletic activities. Certain athletic activities emphasize particular body types and features. This can negatively impact young people’s feelings about their bodies. For example, dancers, gymnasts, and ice skaters often face pressure to be thin. Other athletic activities emphasize muscle mass or height. This pressure is common in activities such as football, basketball, swimming, volleyball, lacrosse, and ice hockey.

In contrast, young people in athletic activities that do not emphasize particular body types or features may experience less pressure and feel better about their bodies. They tend to feel good about what their bodies can do—like hit a home run, score a goal, or make a basket.

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Disordered Eating and Eating Disorders
A healthy diet provides the nutrients your body needs to grow and survive. Not consuming these essential nutrients can hurt health today and in the future. For some people, having a negative body image leads to harmful eating habits.
The term disordered eating refers to irregular eating habits that show an unhealthy relationship with body image and food. Figure 7.37 shows some common examples of disordered eating.

People may develop nutritional deficits from restricting calories or particular foods. They may also lack energy. One example of disordered eating is orthorexia. Orthorexia is characterized by an obsession with healthy eating that leads to negative health consequences.

An eating disorder is a mental illness that causes major disturbances in a person’s eating behaviors. People with eating disorders focus so much on these behaviors that they have difficulty concentrating on anything else. In some cases, disordered eating involves the same behaviors as eating disorders, but with lower frequency or intensity. In other cases, disordered eating leads to an eating disorder. There are several types of eating disorders (Figure 7.38).

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Risk Factors for Disordered Eating and Eating Disorders
While experts do not know what exactly causes disordered eating and eating disorders, they know certain factors play a role. Physical risk factors include having a close relative with an eating disorder and having a close relative with another mental illness. A history of dieting also increases risk.

Mentally, having an anxiety disorder increases risk. Perfectionism (feeling the need to meet unrealistically high expectations), rigidity in following rules, and a negative body image are also risk factors.

As you know, media images and societal and family expectations can contribute to a negative or positive body image. Unrealistic portrayals, lack of respect for diversity, and weight stigma are major risk factors. Bullying, teasing, social isolation, and a history of trauma also increase risk.

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Health Consequences of Disordered Eating and Eating Disorders

Eating disorders and disordered eating lead to malnutrition and harmful behaviors. In malnutrition, a person does not consume the right amounts of nutrients needed for health and growth. When the body does not receive the energy it needs from food, it breaks down its own tissues for energy. Early in this process, the body breaks down muscle. This can lead to heart damage and heart failure, which can result in death.

The malnutrition associated with eating disorders and disordered eating can lead to low bone density, dry skin, thin hair, and brittle nails. Lack of nutrition also leads to a weaker immune system and anemia (an insufficient number of red blood cells). Anemia is characterized by weakness, fatigue, and shortness of breath. Long-term dehydration can cause kidney failure and death. Some health consequences associated with eating disorders and disordered eating will go away with treatment, but others will not.

Some eating disorders are characterized by purging, or attempts to rid the body of food. Restricted eating and purging can cause stomach pain, nausea and vomiting, changes in blood sugar, dehydration, blocked intestines, and infections. Vomiting can damage the salivary glands and teeth. Eating disorders can also cause constipation (infrequent or delayed hard, dry bowel movements) and life-threatening emergencies such as stomach rupture.

Mentally and socially, eating disorders and disordered eating can lead to conflict in relationships, withdrawal from activities, and worsening mental health conditions. Eating disorders and disordered eating are often associated with low self-esteem and co-occurring disorders (mental illnesses that occur together). Disordered eating and eating disorders can lead to difficulty concentrating or focusing on things other than food, exercise, and body image. They can also increase anxiety and reduce the ability to manage and cope with daily stressors. Eating disorders can increase a person’s risk for suicide.

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Treating Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating
Eating disorders and disordered eating behaviors rarely go away without treatment, so getting help is important. Eating disorders are mental illnesses and should be treated by a multidisciplinary team of professionals. This most often includes a therapist, doctor, dietitian, and sometimes a psychiatrist. Each professional needs to know about eating disorders and their psychological and physical effects.

Certain warning signs signal that a person is experiencing disordered eating or an eating disorder and needs professional treatment (Figure 7.39). It is important to take these warning signs seriously. The earlier a person gets help, the more likely the person is to recover and avoid permanent health consequences.

To start the process of getting help, it is important that people talk with a trusted adult, such as a parent or guardian or school counselor. These adults can help you sort out your feelings and experiences, and if needed, they can assist you in seeking help. People can also contact the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline (1-800-931-2237 or myneda.org/helpline) to get support and learn about treatment options. Treatment for eating disorders usually includes individual or family therapy and more advanced treatment, depending on severity.

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Improving Your Body Image
Certain strategies can improve body image and health. These strategies focus on developing a positive, realistic body image, which involves valuing and appreciating your body. To improve your body image, use the following strategies.

View Media Critically
When you see images of bodies in magazines and advertisements, on TV, or in a movie, ask yourself if the images reflect reality (Figure 7.40). For example, when reading a magazine, keep in mind that images in the magazine are carefully posed and constructed. Many young people regularly post edited or filtered images of themselves. To protect yourself from these influences, you can choose media carefully, assess whether images have been edited, and consider the images you share.

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Value Your Whole Self
Try to focus on the features of your body you like. Also think about what your body can do, not just your appearance. This focus on body neutrality can help you value your body and the bodies of others for more than just appearance. Part of valuing your whole self is also taking care of your body. This includes eating nutritious foods and getting some type of physical or stress-reducing activity every day.

Acknowledge Diversity
Instead of focusing on whether your body matches the media’s artificial standards, recognize that people find many different body features attractive. Acknowledging this diversity and appreciating and valuing your body is called body positivity. Body positivity also means understanding and accepting that your body will change over time, due to the natural aging process and personal situations.

Check Your Self-Talk
Another way to adopt a more positive body image is to change how you talk about your body. To assess self-talk, consider what you think to yourself when you see your body in the mirror. If you have a tendency toward negative self-talk, you can improve body image by changing what you tell yourself about your body. This process of developing body compassion, or feelings of acceptance, care, and kindness toward your body, takes time and practice (Figure 7.41).

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Avoid Negative Influences
To promote a positive body image, avoid unrealistic images of people in magazines, on TV, and online whenever possible. You can also avoid negative influences in your daily life. If you have many conversations where your friends talk badly about their bodies, try to shift the discussion to a new topic. In some cases, you may need to walk away or spend less time with friends who focus on appearance.

Advocate for Positive Body Image
To advocate for your own health, remember that you can get help if you have a negative body image or show warning signs of disordered eating or an eating disorder. Talking with a trusted adult or contacting the National Eating Disorders Association can help you get this assistance.
To advocate for a positive body image in your community, you can speak up about idealized images in the media. Let companies, advertisers, and celebrities know how you feel about the images and messages they present. You can also promote a positive body image through campaigns that focus on body neutrality and positivity. Talk to your friends and classmates about starting a positive body image campaign in your school or community.