We turn skeletons into goddesses and look to them as if they might teach us how not to need.

I scrolling down my face book newsfeed, and came across a particular post that actually caught me attention. It read as follows:

“All this bullshit on the news talking about how they need restrictions on calorie intake for the school lunches and how celebrities are gaining too much weight is really getting on my nerves. This is why girls and guys have body image problems and have eating disorders. Everyone is beautiful no matter how they look. :l”

Now look down at yourself. Squeeze any fat you can find there. How much is too much? A pinch? A handful? There is no direct definition of “fat” and “skinny” but as a society, we force our own definitions onto others. There are many different body types, and sometimes the media forgets this. Take for instance, the difference between the Victoria Secret “Love My Body” campaign and Dove’s “True Beauty” campaign.

Both campaigns are missing major body types, and it is impossible to say which body type is more “beautiful”. When it comes to a point where girls look at the Victoria Secret models and start to throw up their meals or simply refuse to eat, you know there is something seriously wrong with the society’s standards. However, we also find girls who are just as skinny, but long to look like the Dove models, but can’t no mater how much they eat. Weight is largely determined by genetics, and there are certain diseases such as cancer or thyroid hormone imbalances that can cause a person to have a predetermined weight.
It is important to be healthy, but weight and body image is not equivalent to health. So stop judging yourself, don’t feel the need to confirm to the image that society demands you be. Be yourself, be healthy, and once in a while enjoy that creamery ice cream without feeling quite so bad about yourself. I guarantee you, you’re beautiful inside and out!

all images found on tumblr