Your body is least important thing about you

There’s been a recent trend illustrating the effects of being a child of a so-called “almond mom.”
An almond mom can be described as a mother that is constantly worried about their own weight and the weight of their children. Because of their concern over body and size, they tend to eat very little, maybe just a handful of almonds for a meal.
Almond moms are also characterized by making comments to their children about their size, weight, eating habits and other similar things.
These women are usually portrayed through short skits or videos titled something along the lines of “Things My Almond Mom Said to Me Over Christmas” or “Things My Almond Mom Has Done Pt. 5.”
It’s always surprising to see the content of these videos. I’m very fortunate to have grown up with my parents never making comments about my size. I know that isn’t a common experience, though.
It takes me back to my speech season this year. In one of my performances I included an article on the phenomenon of ‘Heroin Chic.’
This term refers to the ‘trend’ of having a body that looks as if one was on heroin -- hollow cheekbones, emaciated figure, protruding bones, etc.
Throughout the 80s, 90s and early 2000s, this was the ideal body type. Everyone wanted to be as thin as possible. No wonder parents of today are so preoccupied with weight, looks and size.
As a little girl, I grew up watching TV shows and movies of the late 2000s and early 2010s, so I am no stranger to the heroin chic look. But, since I was young and didn’t know better, I thought it was normal. I thought it was how people were supposed to look.
I became increasingly preoccupied with my body and what I ate as I got older and felt the need to look like the actresses I saw on TV.
As time went on though, the beauty standard shifted away from the stick thin look to a somewhat healthy-ish physique.
This is when we saw the bodies of the Kardashians blow up as being the thing to strive for, and it still very much is.
But recently, there has been a shift once again. The Kardashians got their implants removed, some of Hollywood’s most famous suddenly slimmed down and it seems as if society is reverting back to heroin chic.
The resurgence of early 2000s fashion coupled with the newly thin figures of Hollywood have created a tidal wave of new weight loss trends, prescription medications being used to cut weight and a whole new generation of young people that will be negatively affected by the bodies they see being glamorized on their screens.
Everything is cyclical.
Fashion trends are sweeping across the world faster than ever, therefore, body trends are too.
One thing that the article I used in my speech focused on was the fact that bodies are not trends. They were never supposed to be and they shouldn’t ever be.
But of course, this isn’t the case. Since people are the vessels in which clothes are showcased, bodies get trapped in the fashion and trend cycle as well.
Society is so influenced by the people we see on our phones and our TVs.
As a young woman who got access to the internet very early on, I know for a fact that it was detrimental to my mental health. My little sister also has access to the internet. She likes to open Youtube to watch her favorite creators, but I can’t help but fear the kinds of things she could be picking up from those videos or the shows she watches.
No person, and no little girl especially, deserves to feel as if they aren’t enough. No person should feel the need to deprive themselves of basic human needs in order to obtain the physique that is currently popular.
From now on, as fashion continues to cycle and trends continue to change, I hope that each of us is able to see that we don’t need to change.
People should feel safe and comfortable wearing the clothes they want, eat the food they need, move in a way that feels good to them and simply exist as they are. There is no need to take a diabetic medication to lose weight or only have bone broth for lunch in hopes of achieving a “dream” body.
You deserve to simply accept yourself as you are and carry on with more pressing issues because your body is the least interesting thing about you.
EMMA BULLERMAN is a senior at Aurora High School and is a guest columnist.