Eating Disorders Awareness Week
Katharine McPhee
The week of February 24 - March 1, 2008 marks National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, so Kidzworld has put together a list of facts you should remember the next time you start freaking out about your body.
Stop Trying to Look Like Celebrities
- There are three billion women who don't look like supermodels and only eight who do.
- The models in magazines are airbrushed - no one, not even models, look that good without some help!
- Marilyn Monroe wore a size 14 and is still considered one of the most beautiful women in history.
- If Barbie was a real woman, she'd she would be six feet tall and weigh 100 lbs!
- If female mannequins were real women, they'd be too thin to have babies.
- The average American woman is 5'4" tall and weighs 140 pounds. The average American model is 5'11" tall and weighs 117 pounds. Most fashion models are thinner than 98% of American women.
- A psychological study in 1995 found that three minutes spent looking at a fashion magazine caused 70% of women to feel depressed, guilty and shameful of their bodies.
Some Scary Stats
- 42% of first to third grade girls want to be thinner.
- 81% of 10 year olds are afraid of being fat.
- 51% of nine and 10 year-old girls feel better about themselves if they are on a diet.
- Without treatment, up to 20% of people with serious eating disorders die. With treatment, that number falls to 2-3%.
- About 50% of people who have been anorexic develop bulimia or bulimic patterns.
Click here to check out some great resources on eating disorders.
