It's summertime -- the weather is above 80, the sun is out, and there are countless articles on how to shed some pounds for the beach. Our favorite Laguna Beach reality TV star, Lauren Conrad, has announced her website will ban body shaming terms. This news is spearheading a positive summer vibe for women of all sizes to embrace healthy living, rather than focusing on losing weight.
Conrad's website, LaurenConrad.com will now be using words like "fit," "toned," and "healthy" to avoid body shaming terms such as "skinny," "slim," and "thin."
The truth is we all just want to be accepted in our skin, and feel good wearing it. Our society has put an emphasis on losing weight as a way to define beauty. According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, anorexia is the third most chronic illness for adolescents. The alarming statistics on weight disorders can often be associated with the negative effects of our society's view on the "right" body type. Through the media, we often find ourselves comparing ourselves to what we see on TV, magazines, and social media.
As a busy college student, I find it hard to make time to keep up with going to the gym, going to class, working a job, and eating healthy. It is estimated that 91 percent of women on a college campus have attempted to control their weight through dieting. Although body shaming is usually associated as a plus size movement, it is bringing light to various body types. Women of all shapes and sizes have found flaws and want to change something. Either, you feel overweight and want to lose weight, or you feel too thin and need to bulk up more. The truth is, there is no perfect body type, there is only one you!
Lauren Conrad said in a statement about her website, "We want to make sure that the focus is on being fit as opposed to the number on the scale." This is ground breaking in the world of fashion in today's society. There have been countless uproars in the body shaming department in stores such as LuluLemon, Abercrombie and Fitch and, most recently, Lily Pulitzer.
Being comfortable in your skin should be the easiest task and, yet, we have made it an impossible task as a society. Embracing the idea of being happy in our own skin is something, as a society, we need to promote for future generations. It should not be a competition to look a certain image; instead, we should be focusing on healthy and happy versions of ourselves.
Lauren Conrad -- you have started a healthy trend that should stay in fashion always. Being healthy comes in all shapes and sizes!
