Press Release: “I’M NOT JUST FAT – I’M OLD!”
Posted by Laura on 21 February 2025
Previous body image research has revealed the negative effects of ‘fat talk’ in girls and young women, but new international research suggests that the dissatisfaction with a woman’s self-image may become more complex as she ages and move increasingly to a focus on age and ‘old talk’. Media and marketing surrounding the youthful ideal is increasing the pressure on older women to stay looking young and could be just as damaging as the pressure to be slim.
The international study commissioned and funded by eating disorders charity, The Succeed Foundation suggests that talking about looking old, or “old talk” (e.g., “Look at these wrinkles!” “I’m too old to wear a bikini”), may be associated with problems related to body dissatisfaction. Previous research released by the charity has identified the potential negative affects of ‘Fat Talk’ – speech which reinforces the thin-ideal (“does my bum look big in this?’).
Dr. Carolyn Black Becker, professor of psychology at Trinity University and leader of this study, noted that “until now, most research has focused on the negative effects of the thin-ideal and speech such as ‘fat talk’ in younger women, but we need to remember that the thin-ideal is also a young-ideal which additionally may contribute to negative body image, particularly as women age.”
- The survey covered 1000 women from the United States, United Kingdom and Australia, age range 18 to 87.
- Results showed that both ‘fat talk’ and ‘old talk’ occurred throughout women’s lives, however engaging in ‘fat talk’ decreased with age, while ‘old talk’ increased.
- Women who reported higher levels of ‘fat talk’ and ‘old talk’ also reported more problems with negative body image.
- ‘Old talk’ was particularly associated with body dissatisfaction in women 46 years and older.
- Body dissatisfaction is known to be correlated with, and often predictive of, physical health problems as well as mental health problems such as eating disorders and depression.
Karine Berthou, founder of The Succeed Foundation said, “we feel very strongly about the pressure on people to conform to an ‘ideal’ appearance. We urge the media not only to use more realistic body shapes in their images but also to reduce the public conversations that stigmatises and reinforces unhelpful beauty ideals in relation to age. It’s OK to age!”
Study co-author Dr. Phillippa Diedrichs, a senior researcher at the Centre for Appearance Research at the University of West England and head of research at The Succeed Foundation, noted that “this study suggests ‘old talk’ may have similar negative effects on women. It also indicates that we should begin to explore the effects of media driven ‘old talk’ and ‘fat talk.’
Carol McGiffin, presenter of Loose Women on ITV, has said that “Women are their own worst enemies when it comes to their appearance, if it's not weight it's age they're forever stressing about. So this research doesn't surprise me one bit. I never thought I'd be one to join in with it but I find myself more and more thinking and talking about how old I look. Mainly because I see people around me of the same age who don't, either due to their lifestyles or because they've taken advantage of various anti-aging treatments or procedures. But mostly it's because women are simply not allowed to age anymore and it's time we stood up to it and embraced and accepted it, even though it's not easy."
The research findings also showed:
- 66% of women reported engaging in ‘old talk’
- 84% reported hearing ‘old talk’ amongst family and friends
- 97% reported hearing occasional ‘old talk’ in the media and 59% frequent ‘old talk’
- over 50% of women respond to old talk using denial strategy – ie ‘you don’t look that old’
- around 35% respond with evidence “I do – look at these wrinkles”
- less than 30% deliver a positive response “aging is natural and beautiful”
- around 15% go as far as to suggest action – “if you’re so worried why try an anti-ageing treatment”
Dr. Becker continued, “Overall, our results suggest that researchers need to broaden their understanding of body image and eating disorders to include ‘old talk’, particularly when studying midlife and older women.”
***ENDS***
NOTES TO EDITORS:
The Succeed Foundation was founded in 2010 by Karine Berthou, who has personal experience of anorexia and bulimia. The charity’s mission is to highlight the gaps in support and service provision for eating disorders in the UK and to produce evidence-based solutions for those affected.
The research was conducted by an international team of researchers Carolyn Black Becker, Phillippa C Diedrichs, Glen Jankowski and Chelsey Werchan.
The report is published in full in BioMed Central’s open access journal, Journal of Eating Disorders.
For more information and a copy of the full report, please contact
Karine Berthou
The Succeed Foundation
London
United Kingdom
Phone: 020 7052 9203
[email protected]
www.succeedfoundation.org
Summary of Report Highlights
Body dissatisfaction increases as women age. The ageing process moves women’s body shape further away from the ‘thin-ideal’ presented in the media. Certain life events accelerate this process – pregnancy, less time for exercise as a mother, menopause and etc. The pressure has increased with the media’s focus on pregnant celebrity women who are praised for losing post-pregnancy weight quickly.
The ‘thin-ideal’ is also the young ideal as evidenced by the proliferation of advertising and interest in anti-ageing products and treatments – all marketed to women with the underlying message that a youthful, wrinkle-free appearance is ideal. Models depicted in the media tend to be thin and young. Ageing creates new opportunities for discrepancies between women’s bodies and cultural beauty ideals.
The term ‘fat talk’ was coined by Nichter and Vuckovic to describe the body image talk in which pre- and adolescent girls engage when talking about the size and shape of their bodies. Nichter and Vukovic reported that this population used fat talk for impression management (i.e., to increase social likeability and decrease perceptions of arrogance). Fat talk is hypothesized to increase a sense of inter-connectedness between girls and women; yet at the same time, fat talk reinforces the thin-ideal and decreases the opportunity for girls to interact in more meaningful ways.
When women are young, they worry most about their size whilst women in mid-life worry about size and age.
Surprisingly almost 50% of the youngest age group reported periodic old talk. This suggests that all ages are affected by the thin-young-ideal, not just on the thin aspect of ideal female beauty.
Both Fat Talk and Old Talk can contribute to depression, anxiety and body dissatisfaction.
Women who reported greater levels of fat talk and old talk were more likely to report higher levels of thin-ideal internalization, self-objectification, appearance ageing anxiety, drive for thinness and eating disorders pathology as well as decreased body satisfaction.
Conclusion of the Report
This study provides a significant contribution regarding body image talk among women, and suggests that, due to its prevalence and association with body image and eating disorder pathology, old talk should be addressed in future body image research, particularly among women in mid- older life. Additionally, results suggest that body image programs targeting mid-life and older women may benefit from addressing a) the thin and young aspects of idealized female beauty and b) the role of old talk and fat talk in perpetuating unhelpful beauty ideals and appearance- related distress.
Finally, results suggest that calls for greater body size diversity in media imagery to promote positive body image should also be accompanied by calls to reduce discourse that stigmatizes and reinforces unhelpful beauty ideals in relation to age.
