We are all worried about why our daughters are not proud of their bodies. Why they’re not trying to work to improve their mind. Why, at the age of 18 or 19, they’re losing their period due to being on strenuous diets. Why they gravitate towards people who compliment them with the words “skinny”, “thin”, “model-like”.
It was a long time ago that Kate Moss became a “top model” and said “ Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels”.
Naomi Campbell proved her wrong by having the best body in the business. She proved her wrong by having a “non skinny” body. She has always had a healthy body which is so easy to maintain naturally than a “skinny” body.
A low BMI (less than 17 percent) puts a person at the same risk of increased morbidity as a BMI more than 30.
More importantly, fat tissue is where estrogen forms (one of the places where estrogen forms). When we lose fat, we lose estrogen. When we lose estrogen, we lose reproductivity.
Some things that can help our daughters have a healthy body image include both modeling healthy eating and also, saying healthy things.
Never discuss your diet with your teenage daughter.
Never compliment women on magazine covers. Don’t say anything. If your daughter compliments them, ask what is inspiring her about the cover photo. Then mention how this is airbrushed. Then tell your daughter why YOU find that woman inspirational (and shouldn’t be body related).
Never give compliments to your daughter on her appearance. Never tell her she needs to lose weight. Always enforce “health”.
If she gets bullied for being over or under weight, ask her how she’d like you to help her. Also ask her why she thinks a bully needs a reason to bully. Tell her the problem isn’t in her.
Get your daughter in a training program if you feel she’s headed in a direction where her body weight may make it difficult for her to live life comfortably. Tell her that to you her “health” is important and that a training program isn’t to get skinny. Skinny isn’t healthy.
Never give compliments to your daughter’s friends for looking nice. Your daughter is listening. When she thinks that mom likes skinny, your teenage daughter might go that route to get your approval.
Body image is an important thing that we should create for our kids. Just like we give them tools to discern right from wrong, good from bad and smart from stupid, give them the tools to maintain “healthy” and also tell them that appearances really are skin-deep.
Our kids are always listening. Even when we’re not talking to them.
My mind as a woman 