Research shows that girls are more likely than boys to comfort eat and to worry about overeating. Retail analysts Mintel revealed yesterday that four out of 10 girls aged 11 to 15 feel guilty about what they eat and are often on diets as a result. This compares with two in 10 boys.

Yet people have always eaten for comfort. I used to do it myself. I'd have bar of chocolate then think, "I wasn't hungry so why did I eat that?" And it would almost always be because I was feeling down or had a problem I couldn't share
with anyone.

Food, especially fatty and sugary food, triggers feelgood brain chemicals that make us feel happy and secure again - until the guilt sets in. Then we feel bad and go on a diet to try to make up for it.

Anxiety levels
Today there's more emphasis on weight, food and body image than ever. Obesity levels are the highest in history, with two-thirds of UK adults and one in three children now overweight or obese. We're forever anxious about our weight and our bodies, and unwittingly pass these damaging messages on to young girls.

The emphasis on being slim is greater than ever, too. The hourglass figure that was fashionable when I was young has been replaced with ill-looking size-zero catwalk models. And technology means that models and celebrities can, and often do, look unnaturally perfect in photos, producing unrealistic role models.

There's also still far more emphasis on girls appearance than boys. All this adds to the pressure on teens who are at a vulnerable stage in life.

The dangers
I worry that so many young girls are on diets to counteract the effects of comfort eating. This could lead to a lifetime of yo-yo dieting, which can have serious health consequences, including a higher risk of osteoporosis and heart disease.

It's been shown that diets don't work in the long term and the most effective way to maintain a healthy weight is to adopt healthy eating habits for life. So we need to make a conscious effort to stop passing on our anxieties about food to young girls.

We need to get away from using certain foods as a treat or a reward. We must stop talking about bad foods, diets and poor body image and instead put the emphasis on healthy eating. But, more than anything, we need to help our daughters and granddaughters feel loved and secure, valued for who they are, not what they look like or what they do.

That way they won't feel the need to look to food for emotional reassurance.

Source: Daily Mirror

Picture credit: Asha ten Broeke