Better body image for moms and daughters may be encouraged by feminism.
According
to University of Georgia studies, having a positive body image may result from
being a feminist. According to research, feminist mothers and daughters tend to
describe their bodies in more flattering terms.
Feminist
mother-daughter pairings felt less embarrassed about their appearances and
better with their bodies than women who did not subscribe to feminist ideas. In
related news, experts say their findings indicate mothers have a significant
impact on their daughters. How a mother perceives and discusses her own body
has a significant impact on how her daughter(s) perceive their own.
Furthermore, the converse of this effect was also true; a daughter's body talk
can affect the mother.
Women
who reject cultural standards and expectations about how they should look while
yet feeling empowered and accepting their own bodies for their strengths and
individuality are said to be practising feminist embodiment, according to the study
authors.
The
UG team polled 169 mother-daughter pairs in order to study this complex
subject. However, it's significant to note that the researchers did not inquire
about the participants' feminism. The group's feelings regarding their own power
as women, how connected they felt to their bodies, how in control of their
lives they felt, as well as other "measures of feminist principles,"
were instead examined by researchers to determine their level of feminism.
Negative
remarks regarding one's physique or appearance have been linked to depression,
eating disorders, and body dissatisfaction, according to earlier research.
According to the most recent research, girls' self-esteem may suffer if they
hear their mothers criticising their bodies. Daughters who were confident in
their appearance and often spoke highly of themselves tended to have a
"good influence" on their mothers. According to the study's authors,
mothers who raise girls who are more accepting of their bodies are more likely
to have favourable self-images.
Analisa
Arroyo, an associate professor in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences and
the study's principal author, says in a university statement that one of the
study's primary conclusions is the significance of emphasising mothers as
change agents. The empowerment of women to accept and love their bodies is one
method to end the intergenerational cycle of poor body image, and this is
something we can pass along to our daughters.
A new generation adopts body positivity
Naturally,
as Prof. Arroyo notes, it's far easier said than done.
She
says, there’s a whole set of folks who have never learned to think positively
about their bodies. In actuality, they're ashamed of their bodies for a variety
of reasons, including physical size, gender identity, race, and ethnicity.
Additionally, their harsh comments regarding their bodies.
According
to the authors of the study, negative "body talk" is rather typical
among women. According to Prof. Arroyo, these dialogues have the potential to
become a feedback loop. Suppose a woman confides in her friend that she believes
she should lose weight, to which the friend reassures her, "No, you look
great!"
When
people compliment us, that only serves to perpetuate that conduct, but you
can't just stay silent, can you? You can't say, Yeah, you could probably start
a diet. Comment from Professor Arroyo
It's
also important to keep in mind that the mothers who participated in this study
were children in the 1970s and 1980s, a period in which the term "body
positivity" didn't even exist.
According
to Prof. Arroyo, They grew up in an era when being skinny was ideal and there
was no embracement of the body.
The
study's authors write, "It is possible that the moms in our sample were
taught that their bodies, which naturally could never achieve those beauty
ideals, are inadequate and should be subjected to continuous improvement."
Honesty is the best policy (Body)
Therefore,
should moms simply try to speak more highly of themselves around their
daughters? Researchers acknowledge there are no simple solutions, despite the
fact that it is a start in the right direction.
We
can say this when your daughter says this. Act in this way for her to see, adds
Prof. Arroyo. But that's just acting, right? If they don't actually feel this
embodiment and embrace their bodies. That is acting. We don't want that,
though. We desire for them to genuinely accept the vessel through which they
are living.
The
research team's conclusion is that mothers may and should be open and honest
with their daughters about any issues they might have with body image. Moms should
urge their daughters to emulate them while at the same time working to accept
themselves more.
We
believe that the mother-daughter relationship is one of the few occasions where
this type of body language is acceptable because they have a history of caring
for one another, which may be different from two strangers who normally use
body language to fit in, says Prof. Arroyo. Daughters and mothers play a
crucial role in one another's lives.