Parents, grand-parents or, for that matter, all adults are always ready to give some advice to kids and teens. It is a common practice across the globe and the only way the experienced ones can communicate their wisdom to the next generation!
However, latest study published in the journal Eating and Weight Disorders, says that if parents and other adults hold frequent conversations about body size or weight, it is likely that their wards grow up with eating disorders or unhealthy eating habits.
The researchers surveyed more than 500 women between the ages of 20 to 25 and asked if they remembered their parents making comments about their weight. They were able to identify that whether weight was an issue for the respondents as kids/teens or not, and those who had parents remark about their size ended up believing that they were required to lose weight, even if they were perfectly normal on the scale.
In a way, the study is suggesting that the conversations with best intentions could end up making things worse. The comments may not always be negative but ultimately, focus on a person’s weight or body size places a level of significance and value that children internalize and keep for life.
Dr. Bian Wansink, the study’s lead author told the New York Times that the parents’ critical comments had a “scarring influence.” What makes the matter worse is that all it takes is one conversation to put in motion a lifetime of unhealthy eating habits. “We asked the women to recall how frequently parents commented, but the telling thing was that if they recalled it happening at all, it had as bad an influence as if it happened all the time,” Dr. Wansink, told the Times.“A few comments were the same as commenting all the time. It seems to make a profound impression.”
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