2014-2015 PROGRAM SUMMARY
NOBODY’S PERFECT
Topic of Program: Mental Health (Body Image, Self-Esteem, and Eating Disorders)
Target Audience: Students in grades 5 - 8
Goal: Students will comprehend concepts related to body image, self-esteem, and eating
disorders.
Objectives:
1. Explain the importance of a positive body image (MEH1.8.10)
2. Describe the signs, symptoms, and consequences of common eating disorders
(MEH1.8.15)
3. Identify healthy and risky approaches to weight management (HE1.8.21)
Pennsylvania Standards:
10.1.6.
A. Describe growth and development changes that occur between childhood and adolescence
and identify factors that can influence these changes
10.2.6.
C. Explain the media’s effect on health and safety issues
10.4.6.
B. Explain the effects of regular participation in moderate to vigorous physical activities on the
body systems
New Jersey Standards:
2.1.6.B.2 Eating patterns are influenced by a variety of factors.
 Summarize the benefits and risks associated with nutritional choices, based on eating
patterns.
2.1.8.A.2 Developing and maintaining wellness requires ongoing evaluation of factors impacting
health and modifying lifestyle behaviors accordingly.
 Compare and contrast the impact of genetics, family history, personal health practices,
and environment on personal growth and development in each life stage
2.1.8.B.1, 2.1.8.B.2 Eating patterns are influenced by a variety of factors.
 Analyze how culture, health status, age, and eating environment influence personal
eating patterns and recommend ways to provide nutritional balance.
 Identify and defend healthy ways for adolescents to lose, gain, or maintain weight
1401 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., Ste. 100, Allentown, PA 18104 ∙ (610) 841-4494
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2014-2015 PROGRAM SUMMARY
2.1.8.C.3 The prevention and control of diseases and health conditions are affected by many
factors.
 Analyze the impact of mental illness (e.g., depression, impulse disorders such as
gambling or shopping, eating disorders, and bipolar disorders) on physical, social, and
emotional well-being
National Health Education Standards:
1.8.1 Analyze the relationship between healthy behaviors and personal health.
1.8.2 Describe the interrelationships of emotional, intellectual, physical, and social health in
adolescence.
1.8.3 Analyze how the environment affects personal health.
2.5.3 Identify how peers can influence healthy and unhealthy behaviors.
2.5.5 Explain how media influences thoughts, feelings, and health behaviors.
2.8.3 Describe how peers influence healthy and unhealthy behaviors.
2.8.5 Analyze how messages from media influence healthy behaviors.
2.8.7 Explain how the perceptions of norms influence healthy and unhealthy behaviors.
A. PA Student Interpersonal Skills:
a. 16.1.8.A: Assess factors that influence emotional self-management and impact
relationships at home, school, and community
b. 16.1.8.B: Analyze impact of a variety of personal traits on relationships and
achievement throughout life
c. 16.3.5.B: Demonstrate knowledge of how social norms affect decision making
and behavior
d. 16.3.8.B: Examine how social norms and expectations of authority influence
personal decisions and actions
Talking Points:
 Program will discuss mental health issues such as self-esteem, body image, and eating
disorders including the factors that contribute to them, the consequences, and how
they relate to nutrition
 Self-esteem is how you perceive yourself as a person, your values, etc. Basically, how
you feel about yourself.
 Body image is the mental picture you have of your body – what it looks like to you, what
you believe about it, and how you feel about your body
 Many factors affect self-esteem:
1401 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., Ste. 100, Allentown, PA 18104 ∙ (610) 841-4494
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2014-2015 PROGRAM SUMMARY
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o Your own thoughts and
o Puberty and development
perceptions
o Media images
o How others react to you
o Other outside influences
o Experiences at school, work,
and in the community
Low self-esteem can lead to many different issues:
o Depression
o Not fulfilling potential
o Tolerate abusive situations and relationships
Signs of low self-esteem:
o Not wanting to try new
o Giving up easily when
things
challenged
o Speaking negatively of
o Being overly critical of
oneself
oneself
o Low tolerance for frustration
Body image is how we perceive our bodies, how we feel about our physical appearance,
our sense of how other people view our bodies, and our level of connectedness to our
bodies. Our body image doesn’t necessarily reflect the reality of what our body looks
like.
Body image is shaped by many factors:
o Comments from others about our, their, or other people’s bodies – both
negative and positive
o Ideals that we develop about physical appearance
o The frequency with which we compare ourselves with others
The things people say about us can affect our body image and self-esteem both
positively or negatively. When people say or do negative or mean things which could
harm our self-esteem or body image, it’s called bullying.
Self-esteem and body image, although two separate ideas, are connected. If one of
them is low, it is likely that the other will be low as well (e.g., if you have a negative
body image it will likely decrease self-esteem)
The media plays a major role in affecting our self-esteem and body image. When we see
images in the media, we develop ideals and expectations which are unrealistic. The
media uses many different tools such as makeup and photo manipulation to create
images of people that are so altered they no longer represent the true image of the
person
If we are striving to achieve a body like one that we see in the media, we are judging
ourselves based on an image that is unattainable because it does not exist. This can lead
to drastic measures being taken to change our body, such as the development of eating
disorders.
1401 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., Ste. 100, Allentown, PA 18104 ∙ (610) 841-4494
www.wellercenter.org
2014-2015 PROGRAM SUMMARY
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An eating disorder is an illness that causes serious disturbances in your everyday diet,
such as eating extremely small amounts of food or severely overeating
Anorexia and Bulimia Nervosa are the most well-known eating disorders
In the United States, 30 million people (20 million women, 10 million men) suffer from a
clinically significant eating disorder at some time in their life, including anorexia
nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, or other otherwise unspecified eating
disorders. Many cases are likely not to be reported
The best-known contributor to the development of anorexia and bulimia is body
dissatisfaction
Anorexia nervosa is one of the most well-known eating disorders
o Characteristics:
 Self-starvation
 Excessive weight loss
 Denial of seriousness of low body weight
 Resistance to keeping body weight at or above a minimally normal weight
for age and height
 Intense fear of weight gain or being “fat” even though underweight
 Amenorrhea (in girls – loss of menstrual period due to not having enough
body fat
o Warning signs:
 Deliberate self-starvation
 Intense, persistent fear of gaining weight
 Refusal to eat or highly restrictive eating
 Continuous dieting
 Abnormal weight loss
 Compulsive exercise
 Sensitivity to cold
 Hair loss
o Consequences:
 Bone weakening/osteoporosis
 Increased risk of infection
 Dangerous heart irregularities
 Severe dehydration
 Seizures
 Death
If someone develops anorexia, they will likely be lacking many of the important
nutrients that were discussed in previous programs due to self-starvation behaviors. If
these nutrients are lacking, it can lead to many serious health problems such as
osteoporosis (lack of calcium) or heart irregularities such as irregular heartbeat
(electrolyte impalance).
1401 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., Ste. 100, Allentown, PA 18104 ∙ (610) 841-4494
www.wellercenter.org
2014-2015 PROGRAM SUMMARY
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Bulimia nervosa is also a serious, potentially life-threatening eating disorder
characterized by a cycle of binging and then purging behaviors such as self-induced
vomiting designed to undo or compensate for the effects of binge eating
o Characteristics:
 Binge eating (regular intake of large amounts of food)
 Regular use of inappropriate compensatory behaviors (purging) such as
self-induced vomiting, laxative/diuretic abuse, fasting, and/or compulsive
exercise to burn off all calories eaten (exercise bulimia)
 Feeling a sense of loss of control over eating behavior
 Extreme concern with body weight and shape
o Symptoms:
 Preoccupation with food
 Binge eating, usually in secret
 Vomiting after binging
 Abuse of laxatives, diuretics, diet pills
 Compulsive exercise
o Consequences:
 Tooth decay
 Dehydration
 Tearing or swelling of esophagus
 Irregular heartbeat or heart failure
 Death
Like with anorexia, someone with bulimia is likely not going to get all of the nutrients
their body needs since they are purging the food before the nutrients have a chance to
get properly absorbed by the body. If the body can’t get all of the nutrients it needs,
diseases or other dangerous consequences can develop. The act of purging can also
have consequences, including tooth decay and damage to the esophagus caused by
erosion from stomach acid (esophagus and mouth do not have same protective mucus
coating as stomach to prevent acid-related damage)
Eating disorders would be classified as unhealthy or dangerous forms of weight
management. A better way to develop a healthier body is by utilizing weight
management strategies
Maintaining a healthy weight is important for many reasons:
o Helps you lower your risk for developing many diseases
o Helps you feel good about yourself
o Gives you more energy to enjoy life
In order to maintain a healthy weight, you must know what factors influence weight
o Environment
 Micro: availability of foods at home, etc.
 Macro: community/culture, etc.
1401 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., Ste. 100, Allentown, PA 18104 ∙ (610) 841-4494
www.wellercenter.org
2014-2015 PROGRAM SUMMARY
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o Family history and genetics
o Metabolism
 How your body changes food and oxygen into energy
o Behavior or habits
You have very little control over your environment, genetics, and metabolism, but you
can control your behavior and your habits and make healthy choices during your day to
help manage your weight
Energy balance is very important for maintaining a healthy weight. If you have more
energy in (through food consumed) than out (calories used through activity, basal
metabolism, and thermogenesis), the body will store the extra energy as fat in the body.
This will increase body weight.
In order to maintain a healthy body weight, you must make sure you balance energy in
and energy out over time.
You can reach and maintain a healthy weight by:
o Following a healthy diet
o Being physically active
o Limit the time you spend being physically inactive
If you are trying to lose some weight to help improve overall health, it is important to
make sure you are doing it in a healthy, appropriate way
According to CDC, healthy weight loss is 1-2lbs per week
One pound of fat is equivalent to approximately 3500 calories, so if you reduce your
caloric intake by 500-1000 calories per day, you will use 3500-7000 more calories over
the course of one week which will result in loss of about 1-2lbs of stored fat.
If you consume 3500 more calories than you use, you will gain approx. 1 pound of fat.
Just by changing the amount of soda you drink, you can achieve healthy weight loss.
Creating a positive body image is important not only for preventing eating disorders, but
also for improving self-esteem. You can accomplish this by:
o Surrounding yourself with positive people
o Positive self-talk and making sure you don’t think negatively about yourself
o Getting the proper amount of exercise to improve fitness and achieve energy
balance
Research:
 http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/get-facts-eating-disorders
 Grabe, S., Hyde, J.S., & Ward L.M. (2008). The Role of the Media in Body Image
Concerns Among Women: A Meta-Analysis of Experimental and Correlational
Studies. Psychological Bulletin, 134, (3), 460-476.
DOI: 10.1037/0033-2909.134.3.460
 Markey, C. N. (2010). Invited Commentary: Why Body Image is Important to
Adolescent Development. J Youth Adolescence, 39, 13-1391.
1401 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., Ste. 100, Allentown, PA 18104 ∙ (610) 841-4494
www.wellercenter.org
2014-2015 PROGRAM SUMMARY
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DOI 10.1007/s10964-010-9510-0
Croll, J. Stang J, Story M (eds) Guidelines for Adolescent Nutrition Services (2005).
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www.epi.umn.edu/let/pubs/img/adol_ch13.pdf
Teenshealth.org
Program Activities:
 Clicker questions(?)
o Attitude questions
 Examine commercials/advertisements to see media effects
1401 N. Cedar Crest Blvd., Ste. 100, Allentown, PA 18104 ∙ (610) 841-4494
www.wellercenter.org