Mirror, Mirror on the Wall … Olmsted Academy South March 10, 2009 Dr. Susan R. Rose

About Body Image Body Image is: –How you view yourself –What you believe to be true about your body –How you feel about your body –How you feel IN your body We are not born with a body image; it is learned. –Our culture consistently justifies feeling “bad” about oneself. –Insecurity about appearance has become a global norm.

Feeling comfortable and confident in your own skin A Positive Body Image Is A clear and true perception about one’s body and physical characteristics. Appreciating and caring for your body. Accepting others for who they are – not their physical appearance.

Feeling uncomfortable and disgusted in your own skin A Negative Body Image Is A distorted perception about one’s body (shape) and physical characteristics. Believing that others are better looking and liked more because of their physical characteristics. Believing you would be better liked if you looked different.

Body Image Life Experiences Imagination Feelings & Mood EnvironmentSelf-Esteem How Body Image Is Formed

What you believe to be true about your body How your feel about your body How you see yourself How you feel inside of your skin Mental Visual Emotional Factors to Consider There are four main components to an individuals self-concept of their body. Kinesthetic

42% of 1 st – 3 rd grade girls want to be thinner. 45% of boys and girls in grades 3 – 6 want to be thinner. 81% of 10 year olds are afraid of being fat. The average American woman is 5’4” tall and weighs 140 pounds. –The average American model is 5”11” tall and weighs 117 pounds. –Most fashion models are thinner than 98% of American women. Statistics

The diet industry is a MULTI-BILLION dollar industry with a 99% failure rate! 25% of American Men and 45% of American Women are on a diet on any given day. 46% of 9-11 year old are “sometimes” or “very often” on diets. 82% of their families are “sometimes” or “very often” on diets. Americans spend over $40 billion on dieting and diet- related products each year. $$$ The Diet Wars Statistics: Diets and Dollars

Body Image & Disordered Eating Negative body image can lead to disordered eating and/or eating disorders. Having a negative body image does not mean an eating disorder exists. What are eating disorders? –Anorexia –Bulimia –Binge Eating Disorder –EDNOS Obesity and Body Image –Overweight children/teens are most negatively impacted by body image concerns –Obesity issues are multi-facted

Normalcy Fat is common table talk Size discrimination is often the reason students are bullied and directly correlated with significantly lower self-esteem The inherent goal of most teenagers is to fit in. –Often, teens will go to extremes to feel included.

Messages from the Media And we’ll fix it! If you buy our product, There is Something Wrong with You … You will be better!

Media Statistics By the time adolescents graduate from high school, they will have spent about 15,000 hours with the media and 12,000 hours in school. The average 8 – 18 year old in the United States spends almost 6 ½ hours consuming media in a typical day. Marketing strategies exploit consumer’s tendencies to distort their body images by preying on insecurities and appearance. 1 out of every 3.8 commercials send some sort of “attractiveness message”.

Computer Retouching ture=player_embeddedhttp:// ture=player_embedded : Make Me Beautiful Katie Couric didn’t ask for this to be done!

Other Media Techniques Product Placement Contests Co- Branding Immersive Advertising Food Marketing

Media Manipulation Promises of “quick fixes” and “immediate results” Expensive and extravagant lighting Body part replacement Using celebrities to sell a product Vanity sizing Propaganda and bombardment Subliminal messages

Changing the Thought Process We must all love our bodies – no matter what our “faults” are! The important issue is health, not size! Your self-worth is not related to how you look!

Focus on the Positive/Celebrate the “Good”

Take care of your body. You live there!

Dr. Susan R. Rose