Don’t judge a book by its cover.
One in five primary school age girls say they have been on a diet.
One in three adolescent boys has been on a diet to change their body shape or lose weight.
87 percent of girls aged 11 – 21 think that women are judged more on their appearance than on their ability.
These are the shocking findings of a recent Government seminar to discuss the current state of evidence on body image.
The term body image describes how comfortable a person feels about their body, their integrated sense of body and self, and the extent to which their personal value is tied up with their physical appearance.
Evidence suggests that adolescents with poor body confidence are less likely to be physically active, less likely to eat fruit and vegetables, and more likely to try to control their weight with laxatives and vomiting. They are also more likely to partake in other risky behaviours, and there is a strong link between body image and depression and low self-esteem. Being bullied for being overweight is also very common and can badly affect people’s emotional functioning.
The consequences of poor body image also have a disturbing effect on other areas of life:
16 percent of 15 – 17 year olds have avoided going to school because they felt bad about their appearance.
25 percent of girls say that unhappiness about their appearance has stopped them from putting their hand up in class.
Almost a quarter of girls aged 7 – 21 do not participate in sport or exercise because they are unhappy with their body image.
One fifth of 15 – 17 year olds have avoided giving an opinion in public.
The seminar report says ‘The girls who are keeping their hands down in class today will be the women not daring to ask for a pay rise tomorrow. The girls who bunk off sports because they don’t want to be seen in kit will be the women putting their health at risk by doing almost no exercise at all. And the girls who are being told their value is tied up in their physical appearance are the girls who won’t feel that anything else they could achieve is worth bothering with.’
Girls’ and boys’ poor body confidence has major implications for society now and in the future and it is the reason the Government has developed a work course on the problem. They are in talks with health and education professionals as well as high-street retailers, the media and advertisers, and it is likely there will be a range of policy initiatives to help overcome the issue on a number of levels.
Whatever your role with children and young people, we all have a responsibility to do everything we can to give out positive messages about our bodies and the need to value ourselves for what we are – whatever our shape or size.
To help you promote a culture of vigilance in your organisation, please take advantage of our online learning services containing various safeguarding and duty of care courses.
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Read the full seminar report here.
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