Healthy Attitudes To Food And Body Image
Where there is so much media pressure to be slim, parents worry especially
if the child has a tendency to be plump. What can they do to encourage
healthy attitudes to food?
Be
a healthy role model
A
mother who is constantly dieting is setting a bad example, a father who
makes jokes about being plump is sending a message that thinner is better.
Avoid making comments on your own body size or the shape of others.
Maintain
a sensible attitude towards eating. What you eat at home is important.
Encourage your child to eat a healthy balanced diet (salads and greens
as well as meat and fish) but don't talk about 'good food and bad food'.
All food is good in the right quantities.
'Food
is just food'
Avoid 'comfort eating' or offering your child food as a treat if she's
miserable. If your child doesn't always finish the food on her plate,
don't insist that she finishes it. Don't make pudding dependent on a clean
plate! Never say 'just one more mouthful' - allow her to be in touch with
her natural appetite. Above all, make eating a positive experience.
Make mealtimes together fun and relaxed
Family meals should be something to look
forward to - an opportunity to catch up at the end of the day. Don't discuss
problems or row at the dinner table; nothing is guaranteed to spoil the
appetite faster. Let your child associate food with pleasant socialising,
rather than familial tension.
Media models are not 'real'
Explain that the models in fashion magazines are not 'real'; flaws in their complexion are removed, teeth whitened and the body reshaped by photographic techniques. The average girl or boy doesn't look like that - in fact, the model herself hardly looks like that! Above all, emphasise that reshaping one's body to conform to an unachievable ideal won't bring happiness.
Discuss diet culture at school
Discuss peer pressure to be thin. Let your child know that friends should like her for who she is, not what her weight is. Encourage her to follow her own judgment and not feel the need to diet because someone has teased her at school or to attract a particular person.
Establish a close relationship with your adolescent
Adolescence is a period of transition and makes many youngsters feel insecure and vulnerable. It's the peak period for eating disorders like anorexia. Striving to attain an unachievable 'ideal' weight implies that your teen is dissatisfied with her 'real' self. Make sure that she knows that you accept her for what she is; don't pressure her to be thinner or to achieve more than she is capable of at school or elsewhere.
Communicating with your child and encouraging her to confide in you with her anxieties is a key element in working through potential problems. Accepting her for what she is will boost her self-esteem and give her confidence to value her intelligence and personality above her body shape.
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