Healthy body images are important because the way we see ourselves influences every aspect of our lives: our mental health, our physical health, how we take care of ourselves, how we interact with and relate to other people. We hear a lot about body image and the media these days because the images we see in the popular media influence, and sometimes impede, the development of healthy body images.
A healthy body image does not guarantee good mental or physical health but it can offer a layer of protection against conditions like body dysmorphic disorder and eating disorders. There is a correlation between an unhealthy or unrealistic body image and the media.
Realistic Body Image
A healthy body image is a realistic body image. Someone with a healthy body image can look in the mirror and identify whether he is overweight or underweight. Someone that has a healthy body image does not imagine he can make a living as a fashion model if he really can’t, but he does not believe he is fat when he is really of normal weight and he does not believe he is ugly when his appearance is really average, either.
Someone with a really healthy body image also knows what a healthy weight looks like. Many people don’t and that can be at least partially attributed to issues of body image and the media. The media often suggests that people should be taller and thinner than the average person really is and this can distort a person’s body image.
Body Image and the Media
We know that the media influences our body image. We are influenced, sometimes heavily influenced, by things we see and hear over and over again. The California State University at Northridge reports that the typical American child sees about 20,000 television commercials every year. Television commercials tend to be repetitive and ads for different products often show similar images; for instance, ads for clothing, soft drinks, alcoholic beverages and many other products all tend to feature very slender, attractive models.
These images influence our body image. We may begin to measure ourselves against these unrealistic images and find ourselves coming up short. Numerous problems may result, ranging from minor discontentment with ourselves to severe depression or anxiety. Conditions like body dysmorphic disorder may occur, in which a person becomes obsessed with his appearance and perceived flaws in his appearance. Eating disorders like anorexia nervosa or bulimia may also occur.
Developing Healthy Body Images
Developing healthy body images is crucial for overall good mental health. Since we know there is a connection between body image and the media, we can limit our exposure to certain forms of media that we think might be harmful to the development of healthy body images. Parents can limit their children’s exposure to the media, at least to a degree. It’s hard to hide from the media altogether, but exposure can be limited.
We can educate ourselves about what makes a healthy body. We can learn about body mass index and what a healthy weight is. We can also learn about other indicators of good health besides weight; for instance, people may be technically overweight but still be medically healthy if their blood pressure, blood sugar and other indicators of health are good. Parents can teach children about good health.
If we notice signs of depression, anxiety, particularly low self-esteem or eating disorders, we should seek professional treatment. Everyone feels down or a bit worried from time to time and everyone experiences low self-esteem from time to time, but if these feelings persist or if they interfere with our daily lives, we need treatment. Eating disorders are a bit different because not everyone experiences symptoms of eating disorders and because they can be so serious, even deadly. Anyone experiencing symptoms of an eating disorder should seek treatment right away.