18 Nov 3 Most Commonly Asked Questions: How can I help my child who is struggling with body image issues?

What parents need to understand, is that we are kings and queens in the minds of our children. They look up to us and we have to model positive behaviour when it comes to our bodies and the relationships we have with our bodies. I’ve had many discussions over the years with mums in particular whose child has developed a dissatisfaction for their body and how it looks, and the conversations I have with that particular mum is that they have exercised their bodies and dieted as a form of punishment, not pleasure.

Our kids hear and see everything, and in our homes, we need to promote a safe space for them to flourish.

Remove scales; don’t allow that square box to determine your worth. In terms of older kids and social media, get them to unfollow accounts that don’t serve them. I love social media, and my feed is filled with inspiring people and it makes me feel good. Having looked at a lot of young teenagers’ media accounts they’re often filled with ‘inspirational bodies’, ‘bikini bodies’, and diets.

The first three letters of diet spell die. I think we need to take note of that one.

There is a huge desire for our young people to want to be like someone else simply because of how they look. So, we need to be teaching our children to have a value system that is built on who they are and what they do and has nothing to do with what they look like.