Emily Witt
Every Body’s Beautiful
The truth is out! Goodbye body shamers,
goodbye negative body image and hello to
being happy, healthy and worthy!
Body Image
Body image is one of the leading problems in adolescence
today, resulting in low self-esteem, poor health, mental and
physical illness and a distorted idea of beauty. Approximately
91% of women are unhappy with their body. Is this
acceptable? We need to change our ways of viewing beauty
in order to have a positive body image.
The Cause Of Negative Body Image
The main cause of negative body image is society telling us
that we do not fit their idea of
beauty. With social media being
what it is today, we are
constantly bombarded with
impossible beauty standards that
we are expected to live up to.
With social media influencing what we see, think and do,
there is no escaping.
In the last year there have been dangerous beauty trends
surfacing and going viral. Things such as: waist training,
slimming teas, the Kylie Jenner lip challenge and more!
Emily Witt
These trends are unsafe, unnecessary and have lead to
permanent life threatening injuries.
Social media is the largest influence on how we perceive our
body. 82% of women admit that what they see on social
media has an effect on them, and how they see their body.
Who can blame them? We are constantly being fed images
upon images of celebrities and supermodels showing off
their “perfect bodies” - of course we compare ourselves to
them.
“82% of women admit that what they
see on social media has an effect on
them”
Beauty, Beauty, Beauty! How It Has
Changed?
It is crazy how the idea of beauty changes from time and
time again. It started off with pale skin, full bodies, large
breasts and round hips. It went from long dark hair in braids
to strawberry blonde hair in tight curls. Now the trends are
thigh gaps, thigh brows and bikini bridges. Beauty went from
being size 16 to size 4 to size 10 and will continue to change
throughout time. Now days, to be perfect you
have to be short and curvy but with a small
waist. In ten years it will be completely
Emily Witt
different. So why does the standard of beauty change?
There isn’t necessarily a straight answer to this one. The
world has evolved over time in many ways. The idea of
beauty was just one of the things that changed with it.
People such as Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Twiggy,
Beyoncé and Kim Kardashian have had major impacts on
beauty and how it has changed.
Effects And Impacts Of Negative Body Image
Being unhappy with the way you look or having a negative
body image can seriously affect the way you feel and
behave. At least 50% of teenage girl are concerned about
their body and have been on a diet.
Negative body image can lead to:
 Depression
 Anorexia
Anorexia is the 3rd most common chronic illness in teens.
 Anxiety
 Bulimia Nervosa
 Orthorexia
 Binging
 Emotion distress
 Low self esteem
 Avoiding social situations
Emily Witt
Up to 30 million people around the world have an eating
disorder linked to negative body image. One quarter of
female college students binge on a regular basis. Over 50%
of teenage girls skip meals, make themselves sick and take
laxatives on a daily basis. This has to stop!
Advice
My advice to all women is to be comfortable in your own
skin! There is nothing more beautiful then someone who is
genuinely happy with themselves. Ignore societies version of
beauty and be true to yourself!
If you are currently experiencing negative body image, talk to
a friend, family member, teacher or another adult you trust!
They may be able to help you are connect you with someone
that could help you. If you are concerned for a friend that is
experiencing negative body image, definitely talk to them
about it before anything else! Maybe all they need is to talk
to someone.
Hotlines:
Kids Helpline:
1800 55 1800.
Eating Disorders Australia:
1300 550 236 or (03) 9417 6598
By Emily Witt
Emily Witt