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Body image is a term used to describe the way a person views their body, whether they think it is good, bad, fat, thin, attractive or unattractive, and how comfortable they feel in general about their physical appearance.
A person with a positive body image will feel happy about the way they look and be comfortable in their own skin. A person with a negative body image will be anxious about the way they look, feel uncomfortable in certain situations and worry they do not 'fit in'.
Body image and the media
Although it is irrational to blame the media, it does place significant emphasis on looks and physical appearance. Television and magazines constantly bombard us with images of attractive, perfect looking people, sending out the message that physical perfection is what we should all aspire to if we want to be successful.
The pressure of trying to live up to unrealistic cultural expectations of physical perfection can lead people to feel bad about their own bodies if they believe they do not 'measure up'.
Body image and self-esteem
Although body image should not contribute to the amount of value a person places on themselves, in reality it does. Most people are dissatisfied with the way they look to some degree, which has a negative impact on their self-esteem.
Self-esteem is the way a person feels about him or herself as a whole (self-worth), and rightly or wrongly, is often greatly affected by body image. A negative body image can lead to feelings of worthlessness and intense self-dislike, which can in turn trigger unhealthy eating behaviours and eating disorders as people turn to desperate measures to make their lives 'better'.
Distorted body image and eating disorders
When a person becomes obsessed with the way they look and constantly compares themselves to other people whose bodies they perceive to be 'better', it can lead them to have a body image perception that is not only negative, but distorted. Someone with a distorted body image does not perceive their physical shape in the same way as other people perceive it.
This is often the case with people who suffer from eating disorders. For example, an anorexic patient may not perceive their body size accurately, most likely viewing him or herself as grossly overweight when in reality they are underweight. No matter how hard they strive to have the perfect body weight or how much they starve themselves, they are never thin enough. Images of dangerously thin people often become their inspiration.
Body image negativity and distortion can spiral out of control.