Mums wield powerful influence

Locking up daughters is not an option. There's no such thing as a Family Fortress to keep out all the influences we would like to protect them from.

Yet there can't be a parent who doesn't, from time to time, long for some equivalent and who doesn't feel the utter futility of trying to preserve, or at least prolong, some kind of childhood simplicity against the forces of consumerism and premature sexualisation that Vicky Tuck, the head of Cheltenham Ladies' College, recently identified as undermining the wellbeing of teenage girls.

Her comments reflect a pervasive anxiety among parents that children — particularly girls — are being forced to grow up too quickly because of what she calls a “toxic cocktail'' of binge-drinking, social networking websites and precocious sexual expectations.

She suggests it is exacerbated by media reports. She might as usefully have denounced teenage magazines and body-obsessed television programmes.

And she would even have been correct to include parents themselves in her catalogue of unhelpful influences.

Media influence

In a survey conducted by Girlguiding UK and the Mental Health Foundation, girls as young as seven admitted to being concerned about their body image and saw weight and appearance as the key to securing friendships.

But they were not as profoundly influenced by celebrities and the media as we tend to think. The comments and attitudes of their families had a much bigger part to play — both positively and negatively.

Where mothers are hung up on dieting, their daughters imbibe the same values, says Deanne Jade, founder of the National Centre for Eating Disorders.

“Research shows that, again and again, parents' attitude to food, weight and shape is a powerful risk factor. They pass on their obsessions and anxieties to their children. Even fathers play a part.''

The stress on children was exposed in the report. Girls between ten and 14 revealed that pressure to grow up before they were ready was overwhelming.

Afraid of being isolated, they felt compelled to wear clothes that made them look older. They were confused about how to deal with sexual advances from boys and felt bombarded by media telling them to lose weight, wear make-up and even consider plastic surgery.

Two fifths admitted to feeling worse after looking at pictures of celebrities. Many equated thinness and prettiness with happiness and popularity.

Monitoring exposure to media will not stem the tide of undesirable influences and unhealthy role models, Jade says.

“We should show them how the images are manipulated.''
That said, parents can help children navigate puberty, she argues.

Jade says girls may be exposed to undesirable influences at a younger age but they are also more resilient at a younger age.

“As parents and teachers, we have to keep up with that by understanding and helping them to manage the transition from childhood to adulthood with the least stress.''