"Body Shaming" : Soft Offence, Softer Target and Softest Law

Abstract

The transition from childhood to adulthood is marked by dramatic physical, mental, sexual, psychological and social developmental changes. These tumultuous years can have long term consequences for the individual, especially when it comes to mental health.  Body shaming, weight shaming or appearance-based harassment can be described as the act of mocking or humiliating someone based on their physical appearance. It often leads to low self-esteem, low body dissatisfaction, and depressive symptoms, which is consistent with the growing body of work emphasizing the harmful role of appearance-based harassment among youth. The objectives of the study were to estimate the prevalence of body shaming among school-going adolescents and to assess the distribution and relationship of body shaming with various factors.