SOURCES: I. Park Nicollet Melrose (enter! 2. American Psychological Association; 3. National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders; 3., 4.. 5. TODAY/AOl Ideal to Real Body Image Survey _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ' - - - - •— — . . . . . . . . . . .

Content*6 Your Health

Heroin Took Over Our Town

12 Your NutritionHow to Make Healthy Fast Food

16 Real TeensNoah Is Blind

2 0 Your Mental HealthMaster Your Mood Swings

2 4 Life SkillsRock a Group Project

'Vocabulary

$et in Touch!BY EMAIL

CHOICESM AG@ SCHO LASTIC.COMBY MAILCHOICES, 557 BROADWAY NEW YORK, NY 10012

COVER: ILLUSTRATION BY TIM MAARS

We’re constantly bombarded with advertisements that portray the perfect body as thin and fit.

Would getting rid of them boost our self-esteem, or send us down a slippery slope of censorship?

/ D A L L A S ^ d a Cl a s y

Fast Facts: Body Image1 About

80 percent of U.S. women and 34 percent of U.S. men report being unhappy with the way they look.

^Research ^ O n average, ^Eightyshows Oteen girls "Tpercent

that body devote over of teen girlsdissatisfaction an hour each admit thatcan lead day to their they compareto eating appearance. themselvesdisorders, Teen boys with airbrusheddrug abuse, spend about images ofand suicidal 30 minutes on celebrities.thoughts. theirs.

POSTAL INFORMATION: SCHOLASTIC CHOICES' (ISSN 0883-475X; in Canada, 2-c no. 55980) is published monthly September, October, January, February, March, April and May; bimonthly Nov./ Dec., by Scholastic Inc., 2931 East McCarty Street, P.O. Box 3710, Jefferson City, MO 65102-3710. Periodical postage paid at Jefferson City, MO 65101 and at additional mailing offices, POSTMASTERS: Send notice of address changes to SCHOLASTIC CHOICES, 2931 East McCarty St„ P.O. Box 3710, Jefferson City, MO 65102-3710. CUSTOMER SERVICE INQUIRIES Send email to: custserv@ scholastic.com.

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2 CHOICES

There are 35 tricky vocabulary words throughout this issue in bold. Can you find them all? Go to Choices Online for activities to help you master these words.

M E A L R E P LA C E M E N T & SUPPI

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and women spend less time worrying about their appearance as they get older, according to one nationwide survey.

TURN THE PAGE TO TAKE A SIDE!

What do you think of this

controversial ad (pictured here in New York City)?

it prompted the mayor of London to outlaw all images that promote “ unrealistic”

body image in the city’s public transportation

system.

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because I once felt so bad about my body that I avoided taking part in fun activities, like swimming, where I might be judged on my looks. It wasn’t until I started to value my brains over my body that I was able to find the confidence to

be more outgoing, but it wasn’t easy.If there were a ban on ads that promote

unrealistic body images, maybe teens would feel less pressure to meet society’s beauty standards and find it easier to be themselves. It may not be a foolproof way to reduce our insecurities, but it’s a much-needed step in the right direction. With a few careful regulations, beauty would no longer be defined by Photoshopped images; it would instead become an idea everyone candefine for themselves.

Then young people could focus on channeling their energy into opportunities that will help them grow, rather than worrying about what they look like.

Which Side Are You

On?Vote yes or no at

scholastic.com/choices— and get real-time results

that show how your opinion stacks

up.

I’M SICK OF BEING BOMBARDEDby messages suggesting that my body isn’t good enough! The truth is, no matter how many times teens are told that all body types are beautiful, we will never truly accept that notion as long as we’re surrounded by ads promoting unrealistic body images.

Think about it: In a world where celebrities and models post body-positive messages on social media but are then pictured in magazines looking impossibly tight and toned in a bikini, what are we supposed to believe? The message we’re receiving is: "All body types are beautiful—but be skinny and expose a lot of skin.”

This message can lead to unhealthy eating habits and self-esteem issues. I can speak from experience,

THE DEBATER

Nadya Khan, a high school sophomore in New Jersey

THE EVOLUTION OF THE “IDEAL” BODY

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"F it and thin bodies N O can be ‘rea lis tic ’ to o —

who are we to ju d g e? ”

THERE SHOULD DEFINITELYbe a discussion about the way the advertising industry represents the human body, but a complete ban on ads that feature “unrealistic” body types is extreme and counterproductive. Getting rid of photos of super-skinny and fit bodies suggests that there’s

something wrong with them—taking us from “fat- shaming” to “skinny-shaming.”

Bodies come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some are naturally thin, and some have more fat or muscle. So it quickly becomes a slippery slope when the government starts judging what qualifies as an unrealistic body. The definition of unrealistic varies from person to person and is therefore very difficult to measure.

Furthermore, censoring these advertisements then leads to questions about whether more extreme regulations could follow down the road. If the government gets to make decisions about something as subjective as which

body types are acceptable for the public to view, what else could they take it upon themselves to control in the future?

What we need to remember is that the core purpose of advertising is to attract interest and boost a brand—not to influence our self-esteem or confidence—so promotional messages shouldn’t be taken to heart. Instead, we should use these images as a way to start important conversations about health, self-esteem, and the true definition of beauty.

Seeing pictures of people who don’t look the same as we do is an important step toward building acceptance—starting with body image and hopefully expanding to other differences, including race and sexuality. And in the end, associating any body type with a label (either positive or negative) can be just as unfair and damaging as any single advertisement.

THE DEBATER

—Dillon St. Bernard, a high school junior in

New Jersey

J u s t a d e c a d e l a t e r ,

p e t i t e is in . M o d e l s

a n d a c t r e s s e s a r e

. s h o r t

L a n d s l im ,

a n d m a l e

r o c k s t a r s

t e n d t o

b e s k i n n y

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h a i r .

M o d e l s a r e t a l l

a n d t o n e d , w i t h

a t h l e t i c c u r v e s

a n d m u s c l e s .

F o r m e n ,

b o d y b u i l d i n g

g o e s

m a i n s t r e a m .

SYLVESTER SIAIHW E

Society’s standards for what’s considered attractive have changed throughout the years. Take a look!

CHOICES / November • December 2016 5

i_____________________

Today

S o c ia l m e d i a is

f u l l o f u n h e a l t h y

# f i t s p i r a t i o n , b u t

a t t h e s a m e t i m e ,

t h e r e ’ s a m a j o r

m o v e m e n t t o w a r d

a u t h e n t i c i t y

( t h i n k : m o d e l s

w i t h d i v e r s e b o d y

t y p e s , u n r e t o u c h e d

p h o t o s in a d s , a n d

# i w o k e u p l i k e t h i s

s e l f i e s ) . H o o r a y !

19801960

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