Last Updated on February 21, 2025 | Published: February 21, 2025 published by Jenny Tomei
What is disordered eating?
Disordered eating can mean anything from chaotic eating to simply not taking care of eating habits.
•An example could be someone who doesn’t prioritize food , or often skips meals because they are depressed, stressed or anxious.
Unhealthy food habits are often a by product of someone not looking after their general health and wellbeing.
Sometimes comments in the lunch hall can be unhelpful e.g. “Do you know how bad that is for you”? Are you really going to eat all of that”? Comments like these may trigger disordered eating habits in someone. This must be targeted and prevented in schools, by teaching pupils appropriate language to use around their peers.
What does having a poor body image mean?
Having a bad body image means having a distorted perception of how someone looks without being aware of the reality. It can originate from being compared or comparing ourselves to the unrealistic perfection that our society has created as an expectation, having negative self-talk, or enduring trauma or stigma around our appearances. A negative body image can lead to potentially serious mental health problems.
DOWNLOAD our FREE toolkits on body image for schools: https://jenup.co.uk/tools-and-resources/
How does the school environment unintentionally lead to thoughts and feelings around poor body image?
Teenagers in today’s society can be extremely opinionated and cruel for absolutely no reason.
Unfortunately, bullying within schools is rife and it can be easy for a bully to target an individual for traits and characteristics that should never be considered a negative. Everyone is individual and our differences should be accepted and celebrated.
Some absurd things that young people may be tormented for in schools are things as simple and normal as having ginger or curly hair, wearing glasses, having freckles, spots or acne, not completely straight or white teeth, or even something as ridiculous as their height.
Some people choose to be unkind, creating a cycle that harms everyone involved. In school, students from diverse backgrounds spend hours together in an environment meant to be safe and supportive. Yet, bullying persists, often at the cost of someone’s mental well-being.
What things could happen in school to affect a young person’s body image?
Students developing feelings or thoughts around poor body image has become much more frequently identified within schools in the past few years, thanks to professionals becoming more aware of the issues surrounding body image and the school environment. Many elements of someone’s experience in education can modify their perception of their bodies. Bullying and body shaming in schools during lessons, and social time can play a considerable part in a decrease in a young person’s perceptions of their bodies.
A lack of awareness and education in schools contributes to negative body image. Society must remove the stigma around discussing mental health, body shaming, and self-confidence. Situations like changing for PE, own-clothes days, or school trips can deeply impact a student’s self-esteem, especially during puberty.
How might puberty affect a student’s view of their body image?
One of the leading factors of a decline in a young person’s thoughts and feelings about their body image is the start of puberty. Puberty comes with many challenges that are new and intimidating for them including not only physical changes, that present the obstacle of drastic height and weight transformations, but also hormone surges and cognitive developments that can make teenagers especially vulnerable to negative ideas of the appearance of their bodies. Adolescents during this transitional phase are at a higher risk of developing negative body image which is not helped by the influences introduced to them in schools by their peers.
Why is education on body image important in schools?
Body image education in schools could be an extremely positive way to help improve the overall mental health of the students. Social media has a significant negative effect on young people in schools, and many students are influenced to strive for the impossible goals that they view on social media and around them in society.
Encouraging and teaching students to embrace their appearance and love themselves for who they are—not just for how they look—can be a powerful way to boost their self-esteem, ultimately shaping a brighter future for them. It is crucial for students to understand that everyone is unique; we come in different shapes and sizes, with our own preferences and personalities. These differences make us special. If everyone looked the same, the world would be dull and uninteresting.
Just like any serious incident in schools that requires an urgent and effective response, addressing prejudice related to a student’s physical appearance should be handled with equal—if not greater—compassion and seriousness.
How can a student maintain a positive relationship with their body image
Practice self care routines, such as going on walks, staying hydrated, making sleep a priority, reading books, or listening to favourite songs or podcasts.
Young people should also be encouraged to embrace their appearance and love themselves for the person they are. We all have insecurities so it is imperative that we don’t get caught fixating on things that we don’t like about ourselves, this can be exhausting and draining and further damage self esteem. Focusing on the positives and being grateful for the things that we do have and not the things we do not can be great strategies to continue healthy relationships with body image. Most importantly remember to always do whatever makes you happy!
Sources to help you find out more:
- Millions of teenagers worry about body image and identify social media as a key cause(Mental Health Foundation)
- Body image in childhood (Mental Health Foundation)
- Young people failed by approach to mental health in secondary schools across England (Mind)
Written by Amelia Whent
