Where is all the pressure coming from? Messages from mothers and teachers about preschool children's appearance, diet and exercise

This study used interviews and qualitative analyses to investigate the nature of the messages that preschool children receive from mothers and teachers about their bodies, general appearance, exercise and eating practices. Participants were 10 female teachers and 53 mothers. The behaviours of the 53 children (24 boys, 29 girls) were also observed to determine the nature of their eating and exercise behaviours. The results demonstrated that both mothers and teachers expressed concerns about their own bodies. Mothers also communicated messages to their daughters about losing weight and messages to their sons about increasing their muscles. Both girls and boys were concerned about their appearance, particularly their clothes and hair. Girls also demonstrated some concerns about losing weight, and boys with increasing muscles. Implications of these results are discussed in terms of designing education programs for mothers, teachers and children to prevent the development of body image concerns and disordered eating among children. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.