Body shaming: How does it affect one’s life?

Body shaming: How does it affect one’s life?

By: Amisha Shetty

“You are so fat”, “OMG! You are so skinny… What do you eat? Air?”, ” You are beautiful but you would have looked better if you were taller”, “There is this new fairness cream in the market. I think you need it”.

How many of you have come across these lines at least once? All of you, right? You must have heard someone using them, or maybe you have thrown them at someone or someone had thrown them at you. If you were/are a victim of body shaming ,I can feel you. I have been there. Not that I don’t get such comments now but I have learnt to ignore them overtime. It still hurts me to think about my past years when I was constantly shamed for being too skinny. I was reminded everyday about how ugly I look or why I shouldn’t wear a particular dress. It made me cry every day and night. I felt like the ugliest person on earth……….

What is body shaming?

Body shaming is the act of humiliating or mocking another person based on their appearance. It can be based on a person’s body shape, size, color, scars, or anything associated with their physical appearance. It is not limited to a particular gender, race, or region. People all over the world experience it. You can often hear people commenting and laughing at other people’s looks, judging them for having a certain body type, and advising them to follow certain practices so that they can meet the beauty standards set by society.

Effects of body shaming on health

Body shaming has adverse effects on physical as well as mental health. It leads to depression, body image issues, anorexia, isolation from others, and many other negative impacts on an individual. We always assume that only the person being shamed gets affected but in reality, the person who shames also experiences detrimental effects. Both face similar outcomes. They tend to compare themselves to others, feel inferior regarding their body and hence develop unhealthy eating habits.

To read more about effects of body shaming click here.

How can we stop it?

First things first. Education. It must start from home. We need to teach others that making fun of other people is not cool and how it affects an individual. Also, we need to realize that we don’t need anyone else’s validation to be beautiful. Every body is a good body. We have to learn to ignore negative comments because we are much more than our physical appearance.

Everyone must realize that even the smallest remark can affect a person more than they can imagine. When the whole world is commenting on our looks, it’s hard to ignore them all. It just gets stuck inside your soul and tends to pull you down. But we have to be strong and overcome that pull.

Our body is natural. We can’t change it. As long as we are healthy and kind to others as well as ourselves, everything’s good. Because it’s about what we are on the inside and not on the outside.

I would love to know your views in the comment section…