In the film The Devil Wears Prada, the ing/nue played by a dazzling (and allegedly size 6) Anne Hathaway, star of preteen hits The Princess Diaries 1 and 2, navigates a Vogue-alike magazine’s editorial offices surrounded by ambitious fashionistas who look down their noses at anyone not a size 2 – or, preferably, a 0. One character in the movie shares her weight loss technique: to avoid eating anything at all until she’s about to faint, when she consumes a cube of cheese.
But how does this stereotypical slaving for a runway-slender silhouette play out in the malls and junior high halls of St. James, St. Cloud, or St. Paul? Even in wholesome Minnesota where dairy princesses rule, a relative handful of girls suffer a diagnosis of a life-threatening eating disorder like bulimia or anorexia. But a far more, well, widespread problem is the growing obesity rate among American adults and children.
Seventeen percent of American children are overweight, and that the obesity rate of adolescents has tripled since 1980, reports The New York Times magazine. (“The School Lunch Test,” by Lisa Belkin, Aug. 20, 2006). Experts say the consequences of this trend could play out as these children become overweight adults with high risk of experiencing health problems associated with overweight and obesity, including Type II diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.
“Kids who are overweight or obese as adolescents have a 70 percent chance of being overweight as an adult,” says Amy Kelly, M.D., a specialist in adolescent medicine at the College of St. Catherine’s Health and Wellness Center. She says abundant research indicates overweight kids also suffer psychological effects such as depression or eating disorders because of weight-related teasing by peers, siblings, or even parents.
“There are reasons,” Kelly says, “to start [intervening] early.”
Yet even as attempts to address childhood obesity with everything from stomach stapling for teens to reforming school lunch programs are underway, the most direct approach to creating good health begins at home: Parents should stop focusing on calories and pounds, and start emphasizing healthy food choices, limiting screen time, and putting an end to teasing about weight. But approaching girls with concerns about their weight “is a really delicate subject,” Kelly cautions, “because self-esteem in young girls can be so tenuous to begin with, that parents and health care providers have to tread carefully. I think weight should always be discussed in the realm of health. It’s not related to your appearance.”
Kelly’s research (“Adolescent Girls with High Body Satisfaction: Who Are They and What Can They Teach Us?” by Amy Kelly, Melanie Wall, Mary Story, Marla Eisenberg, Dianne Neumark-Sztainer, Journal of Adolescent Health, November 2005) indicates that how parents intervene – their language and attitudes – is definitely associated with how teen girls perceive their own bodies: “Girls in environments where their parents or peers emphasized being fit and healthy” – as opposed to dieting and weight-loss targets – “were significantly more likely to have high body satisfaction.”
A focus on weight alone sets up “a no-win situation,” Kelly believes. Some people have a heavier body type so will always weigh more than their ectomorphic peers. Therefore, suggests Kelly, “I think the focus needs to be on healthful eating and being active,” Kelly suggests, “cutting back on TV time, computer time.” That approach serves all body types “for a lifetime.”
In addition, helping a child who is overweight must be a whole-family endeavor. Imagine being the only overweight person in the family, and being singled out for special meals and no dessert while siblings slurp milkshakes and down hot fudge sundaes. “I’ve seen this happen,” Kelly says. “That is not only stigmatizing, but anytime people feel deprived, what you are doing is less likely to work. Everybody has to be on board in a positive way.”
Finally, consuming media, not just chocolate chip cookies or fully loaded nachos, can contribute girls’ waning self-image. Kelly’s study found that “teens who read more beauty- and fitness-related magazines were more likely to be dissatisfied with their bodies.” She says the culprits are such image-oriented media as Teen Cosmo, Teen Glamour, and MTV, and advises parents to be aware of what their teenage girls are reading and watching. In other words, that devil in Prada – or more likely, Esprit or American Eagle – may be closer to home than you think.
Kris Berggren is raising two daughters with completely different body types, does not own a scale, and has never worn, nor likely will ever wear, a size 6.
