Show don’t tell: parents’ role in promoting positive body image
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This is how parents can help kids feel comfortable in their bodies.
By Charlotte Markey Ph.D.
Key points
- A new study found that teens desire acceptance, love, and support from parents when it comes to their bodies.
- Kids want their parents to be positive body image role models.
- A new book points out the important societal implications of teens’ body dissatisfaction.
- ‘The older generation, they made/reinforce the beauty standards, then pass it on to their kids.’
The last thing most parents want to do is contribute to the intergenerational transmission of body image concerns. We want our kids to be confident and comfortable in their own skins. But we aren’t always sure how to accomplish this.
A recently published study titled, Be more positive and more kind to your own bodies, asked 14- to 24-year-olds how they would like their parents to support their body image. This survey of 652 young people confirms what body image scientists have been suggesting to parents for years: ‘Promote b...
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