Girl Talk

I am looking for men and women who would like to get involved in helping mentor/support girls of all ages. Many of you might be staggered by the statistics out there of how the suicide rate for girls ages 10-14 increased a whopping 76 % in 2004 according to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention. For those between 15-18 years of age, the rate went up 30 %. How about that TV shows like "The Swan", " Nip/Tuck", "Extreme Makeover", etc... that may be driving women and girls to get cosmetic procedures. The number of 18-year-olds who underwent breast implant surgery nearly tripled from 2002 to 2003. There has been a 444% increase in plastic surgery since 1997. Over 90% of all plastic surgery is performed on women. Americans spent approximatley $12.4 billion on cosmetic procedures in 2006.

Something is seriously wrong in our society. As to the shows that have examined and promoted the benefits of plastic surgey, University Of Southern California professor Julie Albright believes the shows are driving women of all ages to go under the knife. Albright's study, "Impossible Bodies", surveyed 662 colege students in Los Angeles and Buffalo and asked them about their viewing habits and body image. The study recently published in Configurations Journal from Johns Hopkins University Press shows that women that women watch these shows more than men and the more they watch the more they are likely to feel anxiety about their bodies, Albright said.

Albright believes that women are being taught to access power and status through their looks. Rather than buy a Gucci bag women are more likely now to buy new breasts as a sign of success.

At the very least, these shows act as an advertisment for the plastic surgery industry, Albright believes. At the most, these shows impose unrealistic beauty standards that make women question their own bodies while giving them an instruction manual on how to change their appearance.

Albright found the shows play off children's stories most American children know by heart such as Cinderella and The Ugly Ducking. Albright said that it is now everywhere. It is not just for rich women behind closed doors.

Although many of the findings were the same for both geographical areas, the L.A. students felt that their "problem" body parts were a moral failing while the Buffalo students felt their body issues could keep them from achieving success.

What is all of this teaching our young girls ? What can be done about it ? Well for one, we women can be positive role models for the young girls in our lives. We can model the behavior that we would like to see in the girls in our lives. We can demonstrate to them how important it is to eat healthy and exercise to help us feel good, emotionally and physically.

Another thing we can do is to be involved in the community and talk to the girls in our lives about that. Why not stress all the satisfaction and enrichment that you get from all of this. You can describe all the wonderful people that touch your life as a result of your community involvement and the fun and enriching things you do. This might interest them to do their own community service project or to join you in yours. Getting middle-schoolers to think about something other than themselves like ecology or helping those in need is a great antidote to all the negative things they are seeing in the media and possibly experiencing with peers. They need a connection to something deeper than themselves, their friends and their appearance.