In the second book, "What's Wrong with the Diet? What is the role of the psyche?" the key role of the psyche in people's eating behavior was revealed. Harmony in the psyche becomes the engine for future changes in the eating behavior of people with...
What we explore: How does the thin ideal become the ideal of beauty?
What's new: How does the visualization of a distorted ideal of beauty occur?
What we will learn: Why is visualizing a distorted ideal of beauty a deadly process?
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
1. Body image [visualization, ed., author] is a complex construct consisting of thoughts, feelings, evaluations, and behaviors associated with one's own body (Hosseini S.A., Padhi R.K., 2023) [1].
2. The aesthetic standard of thinness as beauty has become commonplace for most people, which has led to an increasing number of people becoming dissatisfied with their body shape, leading to the development of a negative body image. "Be thin or die" has become the motto of many young women today (Shen J, et al. 2022) [2].
3. From early childhood, the image of unrealistic thinness in the form of Barbie and Ken dolls begins to be imposed on the child. At this age, the child's heart is like a sponge, absorbing everything accessible to perception. Then, an unhealthy connection appears - thin means beautiful (Author).
4. Thinness is like beauty. The seeds of the image of unrealistic thinness, sown in childhood, sprout in the environment of the cult of thinness, and, growing up, a human unconsciously becomes its devoted admirer.
• Research has shown that negative body image can begin in childhood. Approximately 50% of teenage girls and 30% of adolescent boys do not like their bodies. In adults, approximately 60% of women and 40% of men have negative body image, and these rates remain stable throughout life (emphasis added) (Alleva J.M. et al. 2015) [3].
What impact does negative body image have on a person's adult life?
5. The influence of a negative image. The danger of this influence lies in the unawareness of the mental processes inside a person. Therefore, the external influence of a negative image is not obvious. For this reason, a person, secretly from others, and often from himself, cherishes the hope of being like one or another model. Thus, the visualization occurs unnoticed by him. His imagination is created from various fragments of the thin ideal, previously viewed photos and videos on social networks, a perverted image of the ideal of beauty (III fr. 4. 5, 8). By comparing oneself to this ideal of beauty, one becomes dissatisfied with the shape of one's body. As a result, the perverted image of beauty becomes the motto "Be thin or die" for many young people (II fr. 14.9). The process of destruction of the individuality hidden within us began, and then the body (I fr. 21. 8–10) [1, 4]. A review and analysis of scientific articles on the topic of concern and dissatisfaction with body image, including body shape and weight, showed the seriousness of this problem on a global scale:
• "Concerns about body image are present throughout the world due to a strong desire to conform to appearance ideals. Although these concerns may vary depending on cultural context, their prevalence and association with poor mental and physical health is global" (author's italics) (Rogers, R.F. al., 2023) [5].
