"I want to be beautiful."

"Sweetie, what do you want to be when you grow up?"

 "I want to be beautiful." replied her 6 years old daughter.

The mother was afraid, afraid that at a such young age, that her little girl was already concerned about her appearance. Later on, the mother looked at herself in the mirror with disgust. My thighs are huge. I wish I had a flat stomach. My face is so round. I hate my double chin. Why are my wrists so big. I wish I had a thigh gap. The insecure parent started to shed tear, after tear and thought to herself.
“How was she suppose to teach her children to love themselves, if she didn't even love herself in the first place?”

Our society puts an enormous pressure on boys and girls of all ages to strive to meet the standards of beauty.

Body Image in teens

According to the US Department of Heath and Human Services, “90% of 15-17 years old girls want to change at least one aspect of their physical appearance”, that being the case, body image is an large issue especially in teenagers. During the teen years, adolescents undergo many changes regarding their bodies. Girls grow breasts and larger hips, whereas, boys will become more muscular. And so, it takes time to get used their new appearance and many will lose confidence in their looks.

Additionally, teenagers brain development makes them more vulnerable to criticism, teasing and negative comments. Adolescents tend to spend more time with their friends than the other age groups, and therefore are more likely to be negatively influenced by their peers. 

Signs of a negative body image

• Paying a lot of attention their looks (weight, shape)
• Signs of depressions and self-harm
• Dislikes the way their look
• Preoccupied by other people’s appearance and the beauty standards that are usually impossible to achieve

Positive VS Negative Body Image

People with a negative body image tend to:

- Have an poorer academic performance

- Avoid certain activities because they are concerned by the way they look

 According to research, conducted by Dove, “17% of women claiming they won’t go to a job interview and 8% missing work on days when they feel bad about the way they look.” 

- Miss out on life opportunities

On the other hand, people with a positive body image tend to:

- Focus more on friendships, relationships with their family, etc. 

- Make new friends with more ease and are happy with their achievements 

- Have a more positive outlook on their life

Men & Women

The vast majority of campaigns that promote a positive body image are targeted towards women. However, both men and women can have a negative body image. In fact, over the past decade, body dissatisfaction in men has increased.

The Alliance for Eating Disorder Awareness reports that between 2.4 and 3.6 million men suffer from eating disorders today. Although the number of men that are affected by eating disorders is much lower than the number of women, both men and women clearly are affected by the beauty standards present in our society.

In closing 

In the final analysis, parents are children's role model and should be cautious of the way they act around their children, since this can hugely impact their children's behaviors and their body image. Our appearance is an superficial quality and as a society, we should focus more on our internal beauty rather than what we look on the outside.

One day, if we redefine our beauty standards, maybe we will finally be able to not only love each others bodies but also, love our own.

Written by Naomi Duggan