This weekend I was flipping through a glossy magazine that largely featured advertisements that had to do with health and beauty for women. There were ads for skin treatments, hair extensions, plastic surgeons, personal trainers, etc... all in the pursuit of helping women feel better and look younger longer. What really caught my eye was a series of books that a local plastic surgeon had written that defined ideal beauty in regard to face and body.
This kind of frightened me. As a mom of four, and in particular two daughters, I am very aware that young women are already measuring themselves against unattainable standards of beauty in the media. As my daughter transitions into a young woman, my hope for her is that she is able to keep her focus on her health and fitness, and not worry if her thighs look fat. I am very proud of her. She has taken it upon herself to pack her own lunches and has started joining her dad for nightly runs/walks. As the mom, I feel it is my responsibility to model a healthy lifestyle and take the focus away from the endless barrage of images in the media. Look at any beauty magazine- the front page focuses on "parts"... how to have a flatter tummy, a deeper cleavage, a shapelier tush, cellulite free thighs. There is a great danger that women will equate their beauty with their "parts" when in fact (to summarize Aristotle), we are all greater than the sum of our parts.
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