The World Wasn’t Always This Fat Phobic Most of us are potential victims of ‘body shaming’ – the widespread phenomenon of receiving cruel feedback when our bodies don’t meet the unrealistic beauty standards of our time. We spend our time lost in self-critical thoughts, despising our body and comparing ourselves unfavourably to others. In a survey of adolescents in grades 9 to 12, more than 59% of females and 29% of males were trying to ‘lose weight’. Over 18% of girls and 8% of boys had, in the last 30 days, gone without food for 24 hours or more – just to lose weight. 95% of people with eating disorders fall between the ages of 12 and 25. There are various reasons why people of my age are targeted, including: we’re too young to realise what’s ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ for our health; we’re so easily influenced by celebrities and ...