Weight issues....not just a girl thing

When weight problems are brought up, what is the first thing you think of? A female? A skinny girl, a big girl? One you think is battling anorexia or bulimia? Someone you think just doesn't care? A young person or an older one? What is it that comes to mind?

Most of the time, those are the images that come to mind. Our society has put a lot of images out there that targets females. "You have to look this skinny to nab a husband," "How to lose weight in 10 days," "Take this miracle pill and never have to worry about it again" There are actually ads for pills out their that use celebrities as endorsements....but those celebrities are suing because they had nothing to do with them. Yet people are duped everyday for those pills.

However, has that image ever been of a male? Of a teenage male? Probably not. Because that isn't what we are "conditioned" to think of. Well...let me inform you...it's not just a girl problem. There are boys out there as well that are dealing with these problems just as much.

My son, M, 14 yrs old....lately he has been sneaking into the kitchen, raiding the fridge (eating shredded cheese from the package), raiding the pantry (getting handfuls of Cheez-Its), raiding our big freezer (taking Klondike Bars of his dad's), and taking packages of chips into his room. We weren't able to get him to tell us "Why?"...he'd just apologize (well...sometimes), hang his head, look away, and walk off. Finally, just yesterday, he opened up to his dad. He has been skipping lunch and so he has been hungry.

Why is he skipping lunch? Because he feels too fat. He wants to lose weight. He's embarrassed of how he looks. He's 14. He's a teen going thru that phase of life called puberty. He's got a couple of pounds on him, but nothing that would make him be fat. Yet, he is seeing himself as having a weight problems. 

I bet that wasn't the first image that came to mind when I say "weight issues." We don't really think of males having the body image problems. Girls are the first thing we think of. However, we can't let our boys get lost in the shuffle. Don't let them think they are any less just because they have a few pounds on them. Yes, teach them how to eat healthy and to get that exercise in. Not downplaying that. (M's dad even told him that skipping and raiding wasn't the way to do it) But, don't let them see themselves in a bad light either. 

We preach this to girls all the time. "You are beautiful." "That is an airbrushed model...don't try to emulate her." "You are worth more than those few pounds."  We need to say these things to our boys too. "You are handsome." "You don't need muscles like that airbrushed model on the workout magazine." "You are worth more than those few pounds."

Just remember....weight issues are not just a girl thing.