How laughter can improve body image

Do you enjoy a good laugh?

I sure do 🙂 🙂 🙂

If you do, I have good news for you!

Believe or not, according to a recent study, the use of parody can be used to increase body satisfaction.

So in this episode, I’m explaining the study findings and how they can help improve your body image.

Watch or read below:

I love checking out strategies to improve body confidence from the world of psychology.

So when I came across a study that looked at how laughter, particularly the use of parody can improve body image, I couldn’t wait to check it out!

This interesting and fun piece of research was carried out by The Centre for Appearance Research in Bristol, UK and Macquarie University (Australia).

In the study, the researchers wanted to find out if social media could have a beneficial impact on body image.

The researchers asked an experimental group of women to look at a number of posts from the Instagram account of Celeste Barber.

Barber recreates images of celebrities and models in a way that pokes fun at society’s absurd beauty ideals. Her posts show the original and the recreated image side by side.

But a control group of women only looked at the original images of the celebs and models.

The study found that the women who viewed Barber’s images experienced an increase in body satisfaction compared to the control group.

In addition, the group that only saw the original images had a decrease in happiness.

Why does humour improve body image?

Based on this study, it appears that humour, particularly the use of parody can help improve body image.

The researchers concluded that humour changes the perspective you have of your body.

So instead of making unhealthy comparisons between your body and that of a celeb or model, you appreciate how unrealistic the original images are.

How you can use humour

So how can you use the result of the study to feel better in your body?

This study highlights that social media can in some instances be used to improve body image, provided you carefully curate what you’re looking at.

In addition to unfollowing any accounts that trigger body dissatisfaction, look out for body positive accounts on social media that poke fun at beauty ideals.

So why not follow Celeste Barber on Instagram? I think her posts are pretty funny!

I’m excited by the prospect that laughter can improve body confidence!

I’d love to know how you use humour to improve your body image.  Please leave a comment below.