Do you have a healthy body image?
By Ayanna
It is a common myth that eating disorders only
effect white middle and upper class females,
however, we women of color are just as likely
to be effected. We live in a society (peers,
school, religious group, work, health-care
providers, and the media) that tells us that
the ideal woman's body is thin, even though
very few women actually fit this model. It
is hard for us to escape these messages and
images, and soon they may start to shape
our ideas of our own bodies. Sometimes the
media make it seem as though we can completely
control our own body size and can achieve
the "ideal" thinness that they
portray, but in fact, to a certain extent, "the
size and shape of our bodies are as genetically
determined as skin and eye color." [1]
It is normal for all of us to have days when
we do not feel confident with our bodies, but
some of us have these feelings more often than
others. It can become an obsession for some.
These feelings can lead to low self -esteem
and even eating disorders. Two common eating
disorders are anorexia and bulimia. People
who are anorexic starve themselves, and people
who are bulimic binge and purge (overeat, then
vomit or use laxatives). When these diseases
are severe, they can lead to death. When a
person has an eating disorder, she or he seems
to be obsessed with food and gaining weight,
however, the root of the problem is most likely
a deeper emotional problem. You have to get
help with the emotional problems in order to
get help with the eating disorder.[2]
It is possible that up until recently many
women of color have been suffering from eating
disorders in silence or did not recognize the
severity of their problem because even many
health care workers believed the myth of eating
disorders as a "white girls' disease."[3]
It has also been said that women of color were
at less risk for developing eating disorders
because fuller figures are more accepted in
communities of color, and that we only start
to develop body image problems when we start
to assimilate and identify with the dominant
white culture's values of attractiveness and
beauty. However, eating disorders do not discriminate.
Anyone of any race or culture with any social
values and beliefs can be effected.
Each of us is an individual with our own beautiful,
natural shape and body type. If you feel that
you want to lose weight so you can move your
body the way you'd like to and live a healthier
lifestyle, try eating regular, healthy, and
nutritious meals and exercise to burn calories.
The key is to exercise and change your eating
patterns, not starve yourself.Your body weight
will then set itself naturally. See what weight
feels comfortable to you rather than striving
to be thin.[4] If you think you or a friend
might have an eating disorder there are resources
available to you for help. One is the National
Association of AnorexiaNervosa and Associated
Disorders at 1-847-831-3438. They can give
you referrals in your area.
Please visit the sections below for more information:
1. The Barnard/Columbia Women's Handbook 1992:
Chapter 3: Body Image and Eating Disorders. "You
Can Never be too Rich or too Thin" http://eserver.org/feminism/real-and-ideal-body-image.txt,
p. 2.
2. The Young Women's Editorial Team. It's
About Time: a book by and for young women about
our relationships, rights, futures, bodies,
minds, and souls. San Francisco: GirlSource,
Inc., 2000. p. 27.
3. Jennifer Daniels. Cultural Roles: The Diagnosis
of Eating Disorders in Women of Color. http://www.something-fishy.org/cultural/roles_jd.php,
p. 1
4. The Young Women's Editorial Team. p. 26
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