Posted under Teens

Study Says Teens’ Sexual Behavior Impacted by Song Lyrics

What’s playing on a teen’s MP3 player or iPod can strongly impact their sexual choices and beliefs, says a new research study. For teen girls, sexually charged lyrics can also cause significant damage to their self-worth and body perception and possibly raise their risks for eating disorders.

Published in Sexuality & Culture, study authors from Utah’s Brigham Young University want parents and professional educators to know that their findings suggest a link between sexual lyrics and teen beliefs and behaviors toward sex. The authors’ findings fall into alignment with previous studies stating there’s a strong connection between exposing teens to sexual content on TV, in movies and through music and their sexual behaviors.

Not only do certain types of sexual lyrics seem to impact teen behaviors, according to a recent Medical News Today article, they also impact the way teens think about their peers’ sexual activity. Researchers believe the lyrics may lead teens to believe their peers are more highly involved in sexual behaviors, contributing to the strong effect of peer pressure to also become more involved in sex.

For girls, sexually charged song lyrics can also contribute to low self-esteem, a decline in body acceptance and a potentially higher risk of eating disorders, as well as problems with drug and alcohol use. They may also be more likely to experiment sexually or view themselves as a sexual object. Males may respond to sexual lyrics with aggressive behaviors toward women.

The connection between sexually themed music and teen behaviors has also gained strength by the sheer quantity of music teens and grade-schoolers are listening to. Studies suggest their usage of personal music players has grown by 45 percent in recent years.

Posted under Women

French Model Dies of Anorexia at 28

French actress and model Isabelle Caro, best known for her controversial advertisements in which she revealed her nude emaciated body as a campaign against anorexia, has died of the very disease of which she devoted her life to bringing awareness.

Continue Reading

Posted under Baby Boomers

Eating Disorders Later in Life

By Leslie Thompson

Let’s be honest—most of us have had one of those days when we were disappointed or even disgusted by the image of ourselves in a mirror. For most, this feeling doesn’t linger very long and we are able to regain confidence in our appearance. But for some, seeing an unfit, unattractive reflection staring back through the glass is a skewed perception that occurs daily—one that reveals the hidden secret of an eating disorder. What’s more shocking is that the person looking in the mirror often isn’t an adolescent girl—it’s a woman in her forties or fifties.

Continue Reading

Posted under Food Addiction

Food Addiction and Eating Disorders

Let’s face it: many of us have had a love-hate relationship with our food. Whether we’ve tried multiple diets in the quest to lose weight or have tried to put the pounds on, food has always been a source of much frustration and consternation. However, it’s when this love-hate relationship is taken to extremes that it evolves into a full-blown addiction – and scientists are honing in on new symptoms that can alert individuals when they’re in trouble. Continue Reading