Cyranowski, A Short Summary And Analysis

The purpose of this study is to examine between obesity and how it causes depression on adolescent girls.

Depression starts to rise in girls around the ages of 13 to 14. Girls start to show a consistent higher rate of depression than boys (Nolen-Hoeksema & Girgus, 1994). Body dissatisfaction is an indicator in adolescence for depression and low self-esteem. In a study by Paxton, Neumark-Sztainer, Hannan, and Marla E. Eisenberg it was shown that this is a spiral relation. This means self-esteem could predict body dissatisfaction and depression, or depression could predict self-esteem, and body dissatisfaction, as well as body dissatisfaction brings an indicator for low self-esteem an depression (2006).

Depression is when an individual has feelings of hopelessness and has very little energy to accomplish tasks; many people have tremendous trouble sustaining an interest in life. In today’s culture, girls have become more depressed in adolescence compared to boys (Stice and Bearman). One of the major influences on why girls are frequently more depressed than boys, is that girls struggle to obtain the perfect body in their own eyes. Findings show that, compared to teen boys, teen girls have higher body shame. Fifty-three percent of adolescent girls reported being dissatisfied with their body after the study (Knauss). Low-self esteem, combined with depression, can potentially be very dangerous for young women.

First, Pipher blames the low self respect of adolescent girls everything from parents to peers, but mainly faults our society as a whole. We are all guilty of getting caught up in the media, television, and magazines. “Have you seen Rosie? She has lost so much weight!” “Oprah gained all of her weight back and more!” These are just a few of the comments that are made after watching two of the most watched talk shows. I know these comments sound harmless, but to a young girl who is struggling with the perfect body image these comments reinforce the importance of appearance. Pipher also points out that intelligent girls are more prone to depression because they are more aware of their surroundings and therefore more aware of the new constraints they face as they leave childhood. Our society idealizes tall, dark

A longitudinal study conducted by Rofey et al. (2009) assessed the relationship of childhood depression and anxiety to weight gain. The purpose of this study was to examine the "relationships between mood disorders and weight in children" (Rofey et al., 2009 p.524).

There was not much research going into the topic of gender dysphoria compared to other disorders in children, however, there is evidence that researchers are becoming more and more interested about gender dysphoria and seeing the benefits in putting research into it. There could be a possible connection between depression and gender dysphoria in a way that outside factors influences the onset of depression on adolescents with gender dysphoria, outside factors being gender norms in society, possible events that happen in childhood, and so on. It is not to say that individuals with gender dysphoria automatically have depressive symptoms caused by the disorder itself, but rather it is the outside factors that cause depression to occur in adolescents with gender

The purpose of study one is to demonstrate if there was an association between the times the young girls get their period and if they develop an eating disorder, body dimorphism or other psychological variables. The participant’s average age was 20 years old; they also took their height which averaged out to 5 '5 and their BMI which averaged out to 22.12. They also took into consideration their relationship status, their religion and their race. The second study demonstrated if there was an association of young girl’s perception of their bodies before they started puberty and developing eating disorders, body dimorphic or other psychological variables. Each participant was a volunteer and to keep it as unbiased as possible they were

The media often captures everywhere of the women body and oversexualizes it. Oversexualizing is to overly render sexual; endow with sexual characteristics (dictionary.com, 2017). This behavior can cause teens to feel depressed with low self-esteem because of social media. The media is also being creative by photo shopping making bigger woman appear skinner, changes facial features, and lighting dark skin. This is ultimately causes a low self-esteem problem amongst women because they are being made to think they are not beautiful. Many females who do not feel beautiful or do not get a lot of attention and will do anything to reach that stick thin figure because it will make them feel beautiful and loved. Cyberbullying can also lead to low self -esteem because other teens will talk bad on that individual for no apparent reason. Depression is a serious illness, and it is very common, it has affected more than 20 million people in the United States. The media has been guilty for presenting misleading examples of depressions and other mental disorders making it hard for people with depression symptoms to admit they need help. Disturbing body image can also lead to unhappiness and depressions, negative body images can influence a woman to eat diet foods in order for them to lose the weight. These pictures that are being display to teens have been

Previous research that has been conducted on issues such as eating behaviours, depression in relation to weight issues or in regards to body image itself tends to be primarily focused on the younger ages, of teenagers or people in their 20’s for example [5] and [6] show just a fraction of the research aimed at adolescents. However these issues do not necessarily resolve themselves once an individual has reached a certain age therefore it is important to also continue and expand research into different demographic of ages in order to see the effects on the wider population other than young individuals.

Alarm for childhood obesity is on the rise in European countries such as Norway (Andersen et al., 2005; Júlíusson et al., 2007). The health concerns for obese or overweight children is particularly troublesome since children who are overweight tend to carry that weight into adulthood. Being an overweight child (and adult) can have a wide range of health concerns, from cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, joint pain, and on a more psychological level they may experience low self-esteem and depression. A study by Bjornelv, Nordahl, and Holmen (2010) examined the association between adolescent obesity and psychological factors. The study was conducted using 8,090 children aged 13-18. The participants completed a questionnaire during one school hour which measured many factors including eating problems, self-esteem, personality, anxiety, depression, along with having their height and weight measured. The researchers found that eating disorders had the strongest association with adolescent obesity. While both sexes were found to experience low self-esteem associated with being overweight, girls scored higher than boys did on all psychological factors. Examining why females tended to have higher scores than boys may help to reduce their negative associations with being overweight and decrease their likelihood of anxiety or depression, several other studies have found similar results, with young girls being more likely to experience obesity and negative factors that are

Most adult mental health disorders first manifest during adolescence and early adulthood (Frisco et al. 2013). Although there are awareness programs in place concerning nutritional and physical activity, the prevalence of obesity is increasing amongst our youth. Depressed adolescents have been found to be at higher risk for the development of obesity in later adolescence and adulthood (Richardson et al. 2003). With this, some studies are suggesting that at later development, depressed girls are at a higher risk for obesity than depressed boys. The predominance of depression has been indicated to increment amid pubescence, especially among young ladies. During puberty, rapid growth and weight gain can ensue resulting in obesity (Richardson et al. 2003). Former examinations offer that weight gain is a danger component amid the move into adolescence. This may be because at this time young people go through life changes such as preparing to leave high school and entering into the labor force. Young women at this point in life may also be leaving their parental residences to enter cohabitating and martial unions and starting families of their own (Frisco et al. 2013). Weight gain is particularly prominent for depression amid significant life-course moves. Obese adolescents have lower health-related quality of life and poorer self-assessed health than do normal-weight adolescents (Frisco et al. 2013). Studies of physical and mental health during the transition to adulthood are also important because this life-course stage marks a time when adolescents experience transitions that can reshape their physical and mental health (Frisco et al. 2013). This proposed study will further test if adolescent girls who showcase signs of depression take a Mood and Feelings Questionnaire, and are put on an extensive treatment plan slow down the rate of adolescent obesity and help cope with

1. Chapter 9, “Adolescence” Body and Mind,” section Puberty explains the physical and mental changes that teenagers go through, it’s the state in which they transition from children to young adults, incapable of completely just one or the other (Berger, 315). The first changes of puberty, physically-wise, begins around the ages of 9 – 13 years’ old for both boys and girls, which include facial and body hair, deepening of the voice, and of course body growth; such as the hands, feet, face, and private parts. Although genetics do play a role of the timing of these body changes, environmental, emotional, and cultural factors can also affect the time and age when puberty happens. Sometimes it’s delayed, other times the process is quicker than norm. “About two thirds of the variation of age of puberty is genetic, evident not only in families, but also in ethnic groups…precocious puberty is genetic, but the cause of the increase is largely unknown – perhaps childhood obesity or new chemicals in the environment” (Berger, 320-321). Among puberty, adolescents’ nutrition become poor due to body image…In addition, there eating disorders that teenagers discover during their transition, they are more “vulnerable to unhealthy eating,” and unlike childhood, “eating disorders increase drastically during puberty” (Berger, 325). This part of the chapter explains two major and serious types of eating disorders. Anorexia Nervosa is a voluntarily starvation in which a person will starve him or

Gender differences do have an effect on depression. Girls are more affected with depression than boys because girls develop maturity earlier than boys. When young adolescence girls reach puberty they grow to become more self -conscious of their self- imagine than boys. Boys are more acceptable to their body change such as gaining weight or regaining muscles. In adolescence girls they seem to always compare themselves to others and their never satisfied with their appearance. This can lead to severe eating disorders

Usually, the first theme that arises with the thought of adolescence is puberty, which can be a tumulus time. Puberty is a time of rapid physical maturation including hormonal and bodily changes. These changes include menarche, weight gains, height gains, and hormonal changes (McGraw Hill Education, 2015). Personally, puberty was a time of rapid growth; I went from kids sizes to adult sizes in the matter of a few months. As an early-maturing girl, I was confused and surprised when I started to notice the changes occurring to my body; I started to form breasts and my figure began to change drastically. I no longer had the body types of my friends who were boys. Nevertheless, these changes began to occur and I wasn’t prepared for one of the markers of “womanhood”; my first menstruation. I went through lectures with my mother and she gave me “talks”, but when it came to reality, I wasn’t prepared. However, with a little patience I have survived the most difficult parts of puberty but this isn’t the only thing adolescences have to deal with.

During puberty, young boys and girls start to experience changes in their bodies. Young girls experience a similar to experience to their male counterparts up until their first menstruation. This is the milestone that changes everything, some girls celebrate their newfound womanhood while others mourn the lose of their childhood innocence. While each response is unique and justified there is another reaction that will affect a young woman 's development, and that is the reaction of those around her.