Body shaming is the action or inaction of subjecting someone to humiliation and criticism for their bodily features. The scope of body shaming is wide, and can include, although is not limited to

fat-shaming Social stigma of obesity is broadly defined as bias or discriminatory behaviors targeted at overweight and obese individuals because of their weight. Such social stigmas can span one's entire life, as long as excess weight is present, starting ...

, shaming for thinness, small breasts, height-shaming, shaming of hairiness (or lack thereof), of hair-color, body-shape, one's muscularity (or lack thereof), shaming of penis size or breast size, shaming of looks (facial features), and in its broadest sense may even include shaming of tattoos and piercings or diseases that leave a physical mark such as

psoriasis Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by raised areas of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small, localized patches to complete ...

. In a study of children's film and books regarding messages about the importance of appearance, media targeted toward children were heavily saturated with messages emphasizing attractiveness as an important part of relationships and interpersonal interaction. Among the movies used in the study, two

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

movies contained the highest number of messages about personal beauty. This study also found 64% of the videos studied portrayed obese characters as

unattractive Unattractiveness or ugliness is the degree to which a person's physical features are considered aesthetically unfavorable of an aesthetic kind. Terminology Ugliness is a property of a person or thing that is unpleasant to look upon and results ...

, evil, cruel, and unfriendly, and more than half of the portrayals involved the consideration or consumption of food. Some forms of body shaming have ancient origins in popular

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs and ...

, such as

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

against people with

red hair Red hair (also known as orange hair and ginger hair) is a hair color found in one to two percent of the human population, appearing with greater frequency (two to six percent) among people of Northern or Northwestern European ancestry and ...

and

stereotypes In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for example ...

of people with

blonde hair Blond (male) or blonde (female), also referred to as fair hair, is a hair color characterized by low levels of the dark pigment eumelanin. The resultant visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some yellowish color. The color can ...

. Forms of discrimination may also differ significantly depending on age group. For example, tall preadolescents are sometimes depicted as awkward and can face derogatory pejorative terms such as "lanky", despite height being a typically valued characteristic among adults.Chen, Hong, and Todd Jackson. "Are cognitive biases associated with body image concerns similar between cultures?." Body Image 2.2 (2005): 177-186. Sometimes body shaming can extend to a perception that one does not sufficiently display

masculinity Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors con ...

femininity Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as socially constructed, and there is also some evidence that some behaviors considered fe ...

. For example,

men A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chro ...

with wide

hips In vertebrate anatomy, hip (or "coxa"Latin ''coxa'' was used by Celsus in the sense "hip", but by Pliny the Elder in the sense "hip bone" (Diab, p 77) in medical terminology) refers to either an anatomical region or a joint. The hip region is ...

, prominent breasts, or lack of facial hair are sometimes shamed for appearing feminine.Namaste, Ki. "Genderbashing: Sexuality, gender, and the regulation of public space." Environment and Planning D: Society and Space 14.2 (1996): 221-240. Similarly, women can be body shamed for appearing to have a '' man-bulge'', or for having broad shoulders, physical traits that are typically associated with men. Suicide due to body shaming is the fourth leading cause of death in 15–19-year-olds. Extensive levels of body shaming can have negative emotional effects, including lowered self-esteem and the development of issues such as eating disorders, anxiety,

body image disturbance Body image disturbance (BID) is a common symptom in patients with eating disorders and is characterized by an altered perception of one's own body. The onset is mainly attributed to patients with anorexia nervosa who persistently tend to sub ...

body dysmorphic disorder Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), occasionally still called dysmorphophobia, is a mental disorder characterized by the obsessive idea that some aspect of one's own body part or appearance is severely flawed and therefore warrants exceptional meas ...

and depression. These depressive effects can worsen especially when people feel their body can not meet social criteria.

References

{{reflist Social stigma