by Christine McGogy

If we were to do a survey about how many of us feel
happy with our bodies, what percent do you think would
answer ‘Yes’?

Current research on body image shows that women are
much more critical of their appearance than men. Up to
8 out of 10 women are dissatisfied with their bodies.

Again, I keep coming back to the media and it’s influence
on our thinking; the beliefs we create because of it.
Every day we watch TV shows with their perfect looking
actors, or read fashion magazines picturing top models.
How can we not end up feeling inadequate in comparison?
We compare our looks to those of actors and models,
and then feel awful because we aren’t as skinny, or
don’t have the same straight nose, or the same hair,
or big eyes etc.

We don’t know how many plastic surgery
procedures the models may have gone through, or how
the photos are touched up and airbrushed, or how many
actors and models feel the need to starve themselves
to maintain their demanded body weight. The models appear
to have it all because of their looks, but do we really
know if they are happy? Would you be happy if millions of
people were judging your body on screen or in magazines?
Would you be happy if you rarely got to eat?

It is estimated that young women today see more images
of outstanding beautiful women in one day than their
mothers saw throughout their entire adolescence. No wonder
there are so many ads for weight loss wonder pills and
instant diet plans. We see ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures
that lead us to believe our lives will be perfect if we
can just loose the weight. Then we will be beautiful,
right?

Again, what they don’t tell us is that many of the people
in those ‘miracle’ weight loss commercials get paid quite
handsomely to loose weight, and are even using other methods
beside the product advertised. And they don’t tell us how
many of these people gain the weight back and then some
after the diet is over.

These companies spend millions of dollars on marketing
figuring out new ways of attracting people to their product.
The most effective marketing method is to make you feel
inadequate, and then offer you an ‘easy’ weight loss
technique.

So do be aware of the big, bad advertising monsters that
make you feel like you have to look a certain way to be a
worth-while person.

Chances are, you have friends or family who are actually
not overweight, but still say they need to loose some
weight. The question you may ask then is, if they need to
loose weight, do you also need to loose weight? Shouldn’t you
too be unhappy with your body? It seems like the pressure
to be skinny never ends.

But dieting can quickly lead to an eating disorder, and
that’s the last thing you ever want to go through. Just
ask someone who ended up in the hospital for malnutrition.

The fact is,overeating is usually caused by emotions.
You may notice that when you feel tired, angry or lonely,
you reach for a cookie or another slice of pizza.

Next time you are eating, ask yourself the question,
‘Am I eating because I feel hungry or is there another
reason?’ If you eat only when you feel hungry, your weight
will adjust itself to where it should be.

Eat a variety of foods, and make fruits and veggies part
of your daily food intake. If you are not already doing
so, find a sport that you enjoy. It might take a few tries
for you to find the sport that fits you best, but keep
looking. Being physically active will help you feel better
about your body.

Unfortunately, some sports nowadays do cost a lot of money,
which can create a big problem for teens. If that is the
case, there are other ways to keep your body fit. Going
for walks with your dog (or your friends), go bicycling,
play Frisbee, jump rope, just get moving. Even mowing the
lawn is good exercise, and you may also be able to charge
for it and make some money on the side!

About the Author
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