It's not Just about Calories

Achieving a healthy weight is not just about the food you eat; it is about self-esteem, self-worth, and a healthy emotional life.

A recent study confirmed that low self-esteem was a precursor to weight gain. The study, which was published in January's Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, showed that adolescent girls who viewed themselves as unpopular were 69% more likely to gain weight than their more popular peers.

This study offers scientific proof for what is increasingly obvious. There is often a direct link between how women feel about themselves, what they eat, and how they take care of their bodies.

Weight management is not distinct from the other aspects of a person's life. It is not just a matter of the food you eat, but how you feel about yourself, what social network you have, and how happy you are, that can influence what you eat and therefore what you weigh.

Ultimately, a healthy weight is a reflection of health elsewhere in one's life: healthy relationships, a sense of purpose, and an overall sense of well-being. If a girl feels unpopular or socially inadequate, she might use food to quell these uncomfortable feelings.

If you are a parent and your child is struggling with popularity and weight issues, here are a few things you can do to help:

• Help your daughter find healthy social outlets. If she is struggling socially in school, help her get involved in other organizations or extra-curricular activities.
• Talk to her teachers and see what can be done to assist her in developing positive friendships.
• Talk to her about self-esteem and self-worth; teach her how to value herself as a person.
• Encourage healthy lifestyle choices, but avoid suggesting that your child should look a specific way or be a certain weight or size.
• Teach her ways to cope with uncomfortable feelings so that she won't need to use food to quell her emotions. Conscious-communication skills and self-awareness will help her understand what she wants from life and how she can get it from other people.
• If your child is exposed to beauty magazines and television shows, make sure you talk about body image. Let them know that the images in magazines aren't real; they have been touched-up and air-brushed. Help her develop a realistic vision of beauty and her own body so that she can make healthy, life-affirming choices.
• Let your child know that you love her exactly how she is, no matter what
• Teach your child to be grateful for who she is. If you are religious, you can teach her the following prayer: "Thank you God for making me just the way I am." If you are not religious, you can simply teach her to repeat this phrase to herself, acknowledging all the great characteristics she has, physically, mentally, and emotionally.
• Teach her to be conscious about her thoughts: negative thoughts and feelings can have a negative effect on her well-being, whereas positive thoughts and emotions have the power to transform for the better.
• Encourage mind-body centering activities such as yoga and meditation. Numerous studies show the health benefits of meditation. Learning to meditate will help your daughter reduce her stress and increase her ability to navigate the challenges of adolescent life. It will also help her to develop an internal equilibrium so that she is not overly influenced by her peer group.