Wellness Wednesday; Body image – Tips For Parents

Be a good body image role model for your children

One of the most influential role models in your children’s life is you. Parents can encourage their children to feel good about themselves by showing them how it’s done and leading by example.

Suggestions include:

• Children generally learn eating behaviours from their parents and other family members, so try to make sure you include a wide variety of foods from the five food groups in your family’s diet. This includes fruit and vegetables, grains, lean meats and dairy products. Go easy on foods that are higher in saturated fat, sugar and salt (for example, fried foods, sweetened drinks). Try to include these as occasional foods and encourage your children to eat a wide variety of foods and in moderation, as recommended in the Australian Dietary Guidelines.
• Try to avoid labelling foods as ‘good’ or ‘bad‘. Instead, focus on the nourishment that food provides and encourage flexibility in eating patterns. Assigning moral value to foods can create an unhealthy relationship with food and can create feelings of guilt or shame associated with eating certain foods. It can also increase the risk of dieting and disordered eating behaviours. 
• Avoid dieting and don’t encourage your children to diet, regardless of body size, shape or weight. Dieting can be dangerous as it can cause symptoms such as dehydration, weakness, fatigue, nausea, headaches and constipation, and can lead to inadequate vitamin and mineral intake. It’s also a strong risk factor for developing an eating disorder. Studies also show that most people who diet regain the weight, or gain additional weight, within a couple of years. Talk to your children about the dangers of dieting. If you’re concerned about the physical health of your children, or their eating behaviours, consult with your doctor or a dietitian.
• Be aware of the effect of negative body talk around your children, about your own body and the bodies of other people. Work on modelling a healthy acceptance of your own body shape and size. Don’t complain about body parts you are dissatisfied or unhappy with, or at least, don’t share these thoughts or talk about them in front of your children.
• Accept that bodies come in all shapes and sizes and help your children to celebrate body diversity. Avoid placing too much value on physical appearances and your children will too. Instead, try to talk to them about all the different aspects that make up a person, such as personality, skills and interests, and outlook on life. 
• Engage in regular physical activity and keep the focus on health, fun and enjoyment. Try to engage in at least one family activity each week that involves physical activity (for example, going for a walk or bicycle ride, dancing, gardening, playing backyard cricket, tennis or swimming).
• Be critical of media messages and images that promote appearance ideals, such as thinness or muscularity. Encourage your children to be media savvy – to question and challenge Western society’s narrow ideals of beauty or attractiveness. This includes helping them to be critical of the images they see in the media (including social media).

Help your children to feel confident about themselves

A strong sense of identity and self-worth are crucial to your children’s self-esteem.

Suggestions include:

• Encourage problem solving, expression of feelings, opinions and individuality. Providing opportunities for your children to problem solve will help them to build confidence in their abilities.
• Teach your children a variety of healthy coping strategies to help them deal with life’s challenges. This includes getting enough rest, engaging in relaxing and soothing activities (for example, going for a walk, listening to music, cuddling a pet), talking to someone and asking for help. 
• Help them to feel able to say ‘no’. Encourage them to be assertive if they feel they have been mistreated.
• Listen to their concerns about their appearance, body size and shape. Puberty can be a worrying time. Reassure them that their physical changes are normal and that everyone develops at different times and rates.
• Don’t make negative or positive comments about their weight, body shape or appearance. Even seemingly friendly nicknames can be hurtful if they focus on some aspect of their appearance.
• Place value on their personal qualities, skills, talents and interests. Help them to celebrate these aspects of themselves
• Make them feel they have an important role in the family (for example, give them age-appropriate household tasks). Tell them what a valuable contribution they make to the running of the house.