Body ImageWhat Is Body Image?

The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) defines components of body image:• How you picture yourself in your mind• What you believe about your own appearance • How you feel about your body, including your height, shape, and

weight• How you sense and control your body as you move• How you feel in your body, not just about your body

What Is Body Image? Negative Body Image

• A distorted perception of your shape, or feelings of discomfort, shame, or anxiety about your body

Positive Body Image • A true perception of your appearance: You see yourself as you really

are and you like yourselfWhat Is Body Image?

Many Factors Influence Body Image • The Media and Popular Culture

• Underweight models and celebrities send the message that being thin is best

• Striving to achieve these thin standards often makes people ill• A study of more than 4,000 television commercials revealed

that more than one out of every four sends some sort of “attractiveness message”

Body Image Below are measurements of your average adult female compared to

Unrealistic body images. Average Woman Height 5’4” Weight 145lbs Dress 11-14 Bust 36-37” Waist 29-31”

Barbie6’0”101lbs439”19”

Store Mannequin6’0”N/A634”23”

Celebrities Body ImageJulia Roberts Pamela Anderson Jennifer Lopez

Height 5’9” 5’7” 5’6” Weight 120lbs 105lbs 120lbs Dress N/A N/A N/A Bust 34” 36” 34” Waist 23” 22” 24”

The above are measurements of women that you see in the media. The images that the media portray as beautiful are still unrealistic for most women.

What Is Body Image?

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• Family, Community, and Cultural Groups• Parents are especially influential in body image development• Interactions with siblings and other relatives, peers, teachers,

coworkers, and other community members can also influence body image development

• Associations within one’s cultural group appear to influence body image

• Studies have found that European American females experience the highest rates of body dissatisfaction

• Physiological and Psychological Factors• Differences in the brain’s ability to regulate chemicals called

neurotransmitters are seen in people with eating disorders.• One study linked distortions in body image to a malfunctioning

in the brain’s visual processing region that was revealed by MRI scanning.

• "One of the ways that the media is affecting the whole epidemic of obesity is the very heavy advertising…particularly on children's shows with fast foods, high sugar, high caloric, high fat foods, bombarding them with the message that this is the kind of food that they should be eating.“

Dr. Alvin PoussaintBody Image Continuum

How Can I Build a More Positive Body Image?

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• Bust these toxic myths pervasive in our societyMyth 1: How you look is more important than who you areMyth 2: Anyone can be slender and attractive if they work at itMyth 3: Dieting is an effective weight-loss strategyMyth 4: Appearance is more important than health

Ten Steps to a Positive Body Image1. Appreciate all that your body can do2. Keep a top-ten list of things you like about yourself3. True beauty is not simply skin deep4. Look at yourself as a whole person5. Surround yourself with positive people6. Shut down negative voices in your head7. Wear comfortable clothes 8. Become a critical viewer of social and media messages9. Do something nice for yourself10. Do something to help others instead of worrying about food, calories,

and your weight Some People Develop Body Image Disorders

1. Social physique anxiety (SPA) The desire to “look good” is so strong that it has a destructive

and sometimes disabling effect on the person’s ability to function effectively in relationships and interactions with others.

2. Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) A psychological disorder characterized by an obsession with a

minor or imagined flaw in appearance.What Are Eating Disorders?

• Disordered eating—a pattern of atypical behaviors used to achieve or maintain a lower body weight.• Chronic dieting, abuse of diet pills and laxatives, and self-

induced vomiting• Not a clinical diagnosis

• Eating disorder—A psychiatric disorder characterized by severe disturbances in body image and eating behaviors.• Can only be diagnosed by a physician

Eating Issues Continuum

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Who’s at Risk?• In the U.S, about 24 million people of all ages meet the established

criteria • Most common among those in their teens and twenties, although

children as young as 6 have been diagnosed.• In 2007, 3.8 percent of college students reported that they were

dealing with either anorexia or bulimia.• Obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, and anxiety all play a role• Common among athletes• Male sufferers are increasing, who currently represent up to 25

percent of anorexia and bulimia patients and almost 40 percent of binge eaters.

Anorexia Nervosa Involves Severe Food Restriction• Self-starvation• Intense fear of fat• Causes are complex and variable• Nearly 1 percent of adolescent girls meet the criteria for anorexia

nervosa• Highest death rate (20 percent) of any psychological illness

What Anorexia Nervosa Can Do to the Body

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Bulimia Nervosa Involves Bingeing and Purging• Binge and then take inappropriate measures to lose calories (purge)• Up to 3 percent of adolescent and young females are bulimic• Often at normal weight or overweight• Caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors

What Bulimia Nervosa Can Do to the Body

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Some Eating Disorders Are Not Easily Classified • Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS)

• Patients with EDNOS are the highest treatment seeking population

• Represents 40 to 75 percent of individuals with eating disorders

• Binge-Eating Disorder• Often clinically obese• Characterized by eating large amounts of food rapidly and

feeling guilty or depressed after overeating Eating Disorders Can Be Treated

• Goal is to stabilize the patient’s life• Long-term therapy• Multidimensional approach

How Can You Help Someone You Suspect Has an Eating Disorder?

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• Learn as much as possible about eating disorders• Set up a time to meet and share your concerns• Provide examples of why you think there might be a problem• Avoid conflicts or a battle of wills with this person• Never nag, plead, beg, bribe, threaten, or manipulate• Don’t talk about how thin the person is or focus on weight, diets, or

exercise• Offer to go along to counseling• Use “I” statements • Stay calm and realize your own limitations

What Are Exercise Disorders? Exercise Can Become a Compulsion

• Characterized not by a desire to exercise but a compulsion to do so• A person may struggle with guilt and anxiety if they don’t work out• Injuries to joints, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, broken bones, and

stress on the heart• Often plagued by anxiety and/or depression

Muscle Dysmorphia Is a Body Image and Exercise Disorder• When a man believes that one’s body is insufficiently lean or muscular• Behaviors include comparing oneself unfavorably to others,

frequently checking one’s appearance in the mirror, and camouflaging one’s appearance

• Individuals suffering from muscle dysmorphia have a higher rate of substance abuse (including steroid abuse), and higher risk of suicide than those without the disorder

The Female Athlete Triad Involves Three Interrelated Disorders• Low energy intake,

typically promptedby disordered eatingbehaviors• Menstrual dysfunction such as amenorrhea• Poor bone density

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