Positive Body Image

Supporting Positive Body Image in Children

Children are exposed from an early age to images of “perfection” in social media, music, TV, films and advertising, which can make them feel that appearance is more important than character and can create insecurities about their own bodies.

Parents and carers cannot completely shield children from unrealistic appearance ideals, but they can help build resilience, self-acceptance and confidence by encouraging children to value their bodies for what they can do rather than how they look.

Body image is:

How we think about our body.
How we believe others see us.
How this affects our behaviour towards ourselves and others
Body image changes throughout life and is influenced by many experiences and stages of development.
A healthy body image is not about loving every aspect of your appearance.

A healthy body image is not about loving every aspect of your appearance. It involves:

Accepting your body as it is.
Appreciating what your body can do.
Taking care of your health.
Being able to filter out negative influences that damage self-esteem.
Body image concerns affect people of all genders and are not limited to weight.

Factors influencing body image include:

Family, friends and community attitudes.
Cultural expectations.
Media, advertising, television and social media

Body image can also be affected by:

Physical and mental health conditions.
Neurodiversity and disabilities.
Life changes such as puberty, accidents and pregnancy.
Puberty and adolescence are common times for body dissatisfaction to develop, although concerns can start much earlier.

Poor body image can:

Reduce participation in everyday activities.
Affect happiness and wellbeing.
Contribute to mental health problems such as depression.
Be linked to eating disorders.
Research suggests that children as young as six years old may already be unhappy with their appearance, highlighting the importance of supporting positive body image from an early age.

Based on information from Parent Club.

For more information visit: Supporting young people to have a good body image | Parent Club