Today’s generation of adolescents have lots of stress in life that can affect healthy behaviors. They worry about self-image, peer relationships, sex and drugs, school, and sports, which are influenced by peers and the media. To encourage teens to develop healthy behaviors, I think we need to spend more time and money working on building a child's self-esteem and body image. “How we feel about ourselves can influence how we live our life”, a quote from a website http://kidshealth.org , that provides articles, resources, and activities for parents and kids, including a special section for teenagers.
This is a strong and very true message to send to teenagers, but how can we get the message across? Well, who are they mostly influenced by, peers! Many summer camps teach these skills, but we are missing the kids that need it the most. I think the health educators need to work with schools or after school programs to start groups that are peer led, to develop activities and discussions about improving self-esteem and body image. Coaches and teachers are also very influential to teenagers so they can be trained in these programs for guidance to the peer role models. Activities should include developing physical, social and emotional exercise to improve self-image by teaching healthy habits. The more we improve a teenager’s self-image the more likely they will develop healthy behaviors.
Hi Beth,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you very much about the stress of kids these days. I have a 10 year old step-daughter and it seems like I am reminding her all of the time to just be a kid. It seems as though they forget that sometimes. The way that their bodies change so quickly and their maturity level is so much different from when I was that age. I think it would be a great idea for schools to implement activities to promote self-esteem and self-image. I also think that more and more children are doing less and less activities than what our generation did as children due to the fact of so many gadgets being made and available to them. More kids need to get outside and play and ride bikes and get the exercise they need and that is good for them and their health.
Melissa V.