Question 3
Why do you believe females were shown to display higher levels of dieting behaviors, including those deemed to be unhealthy or extreme? What role do health professionals play in this?
posted by Tiffany DeMay @ 1:18 PM
17 comments
17 Comments:
Females tend to care more about body image. Is it because that is how we are wired? media influence? we typically gain weight faster? our bodies change through childbirth? it could be any, all, or other reasons that I didn't mention. I think that people chose unhealthy or extreme behaviors because we are looking for a quick fix. We do not always understand that it didn't take a day to gain weight and it is not going to take a day to lose weight. I think support and encouragement are so important in counseling because people are going to struggle and want to resort to unhealthy quick fixes at times and being a support for them in addition to education in necessary to keep them on the right track.
One of my variables for my thesis is body dissatisfaction and I found that research shows that since the 1960's, our ideal body type changed from a curvy body to a thin, slender almost boy like body for women. When researchers analyzed magazines, actresses, and other media they found that this same change in body type is shown. I think there is definetly a pressure from our culture for a thin body. I think what needs to be emphasized in schools are programs that encourage healthy body image, being proud of who you are and seeing yourself as being beautiful. I know a few celebrities fund programs that do these types of programs in schools. Health professionals need to treat body image as something they should screen for and be aware of when meeting with young adults/teens to evaluate if an intervention or education may be needed.
In our society, I think that females can often feel more pressure than males to look good. There is a beauty supply isle in most stores filled with items such as make-up, hair accessories, and jewelry which are items men rarely even use. A lot of media targets women and beauty. It is a gender role – women are expected to be feminine and that means looking the part. This in turn can result in feeling the need to control their weight by extreme measures such as dieting. Health professionals, when seeing patients who are overweight or obese especially at a younger age, do have a lot of influence on that individual so it is very important to communicate clearly and be supportive. It is important to get the message through that health means learning to eat well and make the right choices for the rest of your life, not just dieting when we need to lose a few pounds for a wedding or a vacation.
Michela,I'm glad you brought up the research you found from your thesis. It is amazing how our ideal body image has changed so much over the years. Also, you bring up an excellent idea on creating a type of screening for younger individuals related to unhealthy eating habits. It reminded me of how they do questionnaires that screen for depression in prenatal women at WIC. It could alert us to potential problems that need to be addressed.
The media really focuses on displaying the "desired" female body image even in children's shows. I think this impacts young girls without them realizing it at first. Then as time goes on, they begin comparing themselves to the people on t.v. Once they reach the older elementary/middle school age, they begin comparing themselves to their peers as well. Health professionals should be present in schools to explain that everyone has a different body style and that's okay. I think the major concept to stress is a healthy lifestyle that includes healthy eating habits and physical activity rather than a certain body image.
Brooke- I agree that it is a gender role. Males don't seem to have the pressure that females do to look good. You also make a good point about getting the message across about leading a healthy lifestyle throughout life rather than just dieting here and there for an event. I hate when I hear someone say they are dieting!! That word itself implies that there is a lot of pressure to "diet" and lose all this weight to look good. The focus should be on health rather than beauty.
Women feel pressured to achieve an ideal body type portrayed in the media and I think that the ideal for women is more unrealisitic and difficult to achieve than the ideal for men. It doesn't help that many women will judge and criticize other women in order to make themselves feel better about their own flaws. Health professionals need to emphasize that HEALTHY is beautiful.
You all make excellent points and I think we all agree there needs to be more of a focus on healthy body image. I feel that there was a bit push in certain campaigns for real beauty but now they we talk about this I have not seen it in advertisements recently.
I agree with you all that the 'ideal' body type for women is much less realistic than for men, thus more women engage in behaviors to change their body shape/size. I loved learning about 'health at any size' in college - the focus on health, energy level and lifestyle rather than pounds, calories and size. This is definitely the dietitian's arena!
The DOVE campaign has a great video that illustrates how school-aged children (girls) are influenced by the media in regards to the way they should look. I don't see this issue being resolved anytime soon. I'm unsure of the education school teachers or pediatricians receive when it comes to disordered eating behaviors. Personally, I lost 20 lbs between my sophomore year physical and junior year physical, and no nutritional issues were addressed at the time. Today, we have many obesity coallitions working hard to fight the battle of obesity in our youth. I cannot recall any program advocating for disordered eating patterns (I'm sure they are out there but possibly they are overshadowed by our quest to fight obesity (which is equally as important)).
I think there are several factors for these findings. My first idea is that possibly females are more willing to talk about these issues than males. Males might not want to admit or let anyone know their issues. I also believe females and much more targeted and feel more pressure to try and reach these ideals caused by the media. They feel they need to be the size 0 model they look up to and turn to unhealthy habits to try and reach this unattainable body. There are probably many other factors, these are just a couple. I think health professionals need to play the role of proper education. We need to let them know that these bodies are very rare and not everyone can attain them. We also need to stress the importance of being healthy, not skinny. Patients should achieve this by eating a balanced diet, controlling portions, and exercising.
Kathy-
You're so right about some women judging others to make them feel better about themselves. We all need to stick up for each other!! :)
Steph-
I think you're totally right. Many people choose unhealthy weight loss methods, like diet pills, as a quick fix. It's health professionals responsibility to educate these people and let them know that becoming healthy, like losing weight, is not a quick fix. Lifestyle changes need to be made and counseling can really keep this process going.
I feel that girls get more pressure from their peers to look a certain way. As much as the media gets a bad rap for all the unrealistic models and skewing what healthy looks like, a person will still try and fit in with the people around them. As health professionals we can encourage healthy eating at a young age and by teaching it in schools hopefully we can eliminate some unrealistic expectation set by a person’s peers.
Now just sticking up for my gender, does anyone feel that guys also have to live up to this manly, man body image? I do feel that women may use unhealthy diet pratices to reach their "goals" but I feel the guys should receive a speech tailor to supplements. Many of my friends have taking supplements without knowing what is doing to their body.
Kathy, you bring up a good point that women actually judge other women frequently. Its too bad that this is what happens, we should be supporting each other and encouraging self confidence!
Kevin - I think you're right that guys experience body pressures and can develop eating/weight problems too, but since the expectation for them isn't 'lean and skinny' they don't use extreme weight control behaviors like girls do.
We had a really interesting continuing ed presentation at the local hospital recently on military nutrition, and two representatives from the local military base came in to give their perspective. They shared about the extremely unhealthy behaviors going on in the military, especially basic training, that involve a rigorous workout schedule (even more than what is required) combined with protein packing. They talked about guys they know who would work out and take protein shakes or powders and leave their MREs (military pre-packaged meals) untouched. As we can imagine, they said these guys may have big muscles, but they're really not that strong and they can end up passing out because of lack of carbohydrate or other complications.
So based on this, yes, men experience pressure and can do extreme dieting, just not in the ways that this study examined.
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