You'd Be So Pretty If . . .: Teaching Our Daughters to Love Their Bodies--Even When We Don't Love Our Own
Chadwick, who wrote a Weight Loss Diary column forShape, lost 26 pounds over the course of one year. During the process, the mother of two worried about how her weight-loss project would affect her 13-year-old daughter, and she began to explore her own feelings about how her mother had negatively influenced her body image. Through interviews with experts, mothers and daughters, and personal reflection, Chadwick concludes that moms hold a crucial key to how girls will feel about themselves for years to come. An essential step in raising girls with a positive body image, Chadwick maintains, is to be a positive role model; she encourages mothers to walk the talk by following a healthy life style, exuding confidence and by refraining from disparaging their own bodies. Helpful boxes on how to help girls build a positive body image conclude each chapter, with tips ranging from respecting girls' clothing choices to helping them find a physical activity or sport. Chadwick, who suffered from anorexia as a teen, emphasizes the importance of stressing health over weight loss. This is a thoughtful guide for moms who are rightly concerned about the body image legacy they will inevitably pass on to their daughters.(May)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.