Reading Diet Articles Linked to Eating Disorders

This is one of those things in life that in hind site seem so obvious that it's surprising when you finally hear somebody with scientific credentials publish it:

Reading diet articles linked to eating disorders
From MSNBC: Magazine headlines entice teenage girls with promises like, “Get the body you want!” or “Hit your dream weight now!”

But a new study suggests reading articles about diet and weight loss could have unhealthy consequences later.

Teenage girls who frequently read magazine articles about dieting were more likely five years later to practice extreme weight-loss measures such as vomiting than girls who never read such articles, the University of Minnesota study found.

The study didn't mention any of the magazines the teenagers read. However, one magazine is mentioned:

Nathan Christopher, a spokesman for Seventeen magazine, said health is important to the magazine’s readers. He wouldn’t comment specifically on the study because it was unclear which magazines the teenagers read.

“We have always featured information to help them lead healthy lives, including fitness tips, first-person health stories, and nutrition facts. Promoting a healthy body image is a priority, so each issue of Seventeen features teens with realistic body types,” he said.

In January, Seventeen magazine and its Web site will kick off a yearlong program called “New Body, New You,” which will feature expert advice on nutrition, health and fitness topics, he said.

The celebrity endorser for this "challenge" is JoJo, a teenage superstar singer who obviously doesn't need to lose any weight. When you take a peek at her blog entry for December, she writes that she looks to Beyoncé Knowles as a role model because she "she runs on the treadmill every day so that she can keep up her stamina onstage." According to JoJo, Beyoncé is an inspiration because "her body is absolutely beautiful, and she's healthy, too."

You won't get any arguement from me that Beyoncé is a fine looking woman. She seems to have all the right curves in all the right places. But is she really healthy? This is the same Beyoncé who claims to have lost 20 pounds by consuming a concoction made up of maple syrup, lemon juice, water, and cayenne pepper (more here). Way to pick your healthy role models, JoJo. She's not inspirational, she's merely genetically gifted and a celebrity with an army of stylists at her disposal to make her look great all the time.

You want a role model? Try professional athletes, those whose careers and livelihood depend on the performance of their bodies...not their appearance.

I've got a daughter and I'm constantly on the lookout for the kind of negative messages being fed women of all ages. I do my best not to focus on the physical appearance of her body but on what her body can do. I also teach her how unhealthy foods can hold her back as far as exercise and play goes as opposed to making her overweight. It's a fine line to walk but she's worth it.