Building the Perfect Body

When I was a kid, I remember all the ads in comic books promising the "perfect body", just send in the coupon along with a buck and the secret would be revealed. I longed for bigger biceps and a "he-man" chest. I also remember looking through my mother's magazines, marvelling at all the ads for "bosom" enhancement. The quest for a perfect body also goes way back to ancient times.

But there is something different happening today - perfect body creation is a huge industry, from diets, books, videos, health clubs, and finally the plastic surgeon. And not only are women being sexually objectified, the pressures are now extending to men. Ohio State University has studied the problem, and has found that men who are exposed to media images of muscular men are more dissatisfied with their own bodies, and that can lead to behavior that can prove to be dangerous. In the quest for the ideal body, men tend to use supplements or steroids, and calorie counting can lead to the elimination of important foods from a healthy diet.

I personally feel that EVERY BODY shoud strive to be healthy and happy, but there has to be BODY ACCEPTANCE, the realization that we are not "perfect", that we sometimes sag where we don't want to sag, that we tend to wrinkle with age, that we don't all have big chests or breasts to fit the sexual ideals of our objectification-prone society. Poor body image has to be treated as a disorder, related to bulimia and anorexia, it's a state of mind that is harmful to the overall well-being of any person. It's becoming increasingly more difficult to block out the visual and concentrate on the internal characteristics of people.

Which leads directly into nudism/naturism. When we are all naked, we have nothing left to hide on the outside, which leads to a new openness from the inside. If one is able to accept others as they are, it becomes easier to accept one's self. The key is to work for the demystification of the human body, to resist the ultra-conservative moralists who want every "shameful" body part covered up "for the sake of the children". I say that the normalization of the nude body IS for the sake of the children. In removing the mystery of something we ALL HAVE, which is a HUMAN BODY, we can create a healthier attitude in our children, so that they can realize that it is NORMAL to be different, that even the most "perfect" model or movie star is an airbrushed or digital illusion. Physical health and mental health are of paramount importance in a strong society; censorship, paranoia, pornography and moralistic opression are signs of a sick society.

So, for the sake of the children, work for body acceptance. You don't have to be nude, but believe me, it helps.