I was reading an article the other day and discovered some interesting, although somewhat disturbing, information regarding statistics on thinness.
It is really rather sad. Being thin is healthier for you, it is true. You are also more comfortable moving about when you are thin. Your clothes do feel better on you. As a whole, sadly, you are more accepted when you are a thinner person versus a heavier person. To what extent though do we take thinness?
A recent poll of American women in a popular woman’s magazine found that out of the thousands that were questioned on the topic of thinness most of them desired to lose 10 to 15 pounds. That does not surprise me. What does surprise me is that they also, given a choice, would rather be thin than be loved. This is sad to me. Love is a basic human need and they would give that up for thinness? I do not know about that one.
The second interesting thing in this article was on the discussion of models. Backing up about a generation models were thin, but only 8 percent less than the average woman. This figure has now climbed to 23 percent less. Does this mean that the average American woman is getting heavier or has the fashion industry demanded more “thinness” from their models? It could be a little of both, I think.
The last thing that caught my attention is that more and more children (girls), as young as 10 years old, are dieting. They are doing this to compete with other girls, of course. This is the most dangerous of all because society has put so much pressure on the female to be thin and it jumps out at us in the media. We must encourage our girls to eat right and healthy. Dieting at this age may turn in to an obsession and this is the route that a food disorder, such as anorexia or bulimia travels. If the young girl in your life is appearing to diet or is overweight, explain and help them to become educated on healthy eating. Let them know that if they do desire to lose some weight that it is best done through a balanced diet and exercise. Make them aware of the dangers that can take place in their body if they diet too harshly and in an unhealthy manner. Never ridicule an overweight child, help them instead to succeed in a healthy way.
Angel Lynn writes in weight loss, single parenting, media and health.