How Fatphobic Slang Is Hurting Teens' Mental Health
Eight must-read stories about boy culture, the difference between bullying and meanness, improving postpartum care, and more. PLUS: How do schools actually implement cell phone bans?
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In this edition:
How ‘Big Back,’ ‘Fatty,’ And Other ‘Fatphobic’ Slang Is Damaging Your Teen’s Mental Health
Why “Boy” Culture Is Hurting Boys And Everyone Else
High-Quality Postpartum Care In The U.S. Is Taking A Cue From Europe And Asia
Conflict Resolution On The Playground
3 Schools, 3 Principals, 3 Cell Phone Bans
A Detailed Look At Children’s Brains Might Show How Sex And Gender Are Different, New Study Says
Everyone Wants To 'Save the Children' From Social Media, But What About the Rest of Us?
Students Target Teachers in Group TikTok Attack, Shaking Their School
How ‘Big Back,’ ‘Fatty,’ And Other ‘Fatphobic’ Slang Is Damaging Your Teen’s Mental Health (Fortune Well)
“Hey fatty!”
“I’m so big back!”
“We’re being such biggies right now!”
Welcome to the latest teen-girl parlance—a TikTok-trend spinoff that’s become the new language of casual, constant joking used to poke fun at each other, and one’s self, for eating.
And while many teens say the jargon is simply meant to be playful, others admit they find it hurtful, or at least jarring. Experts find the explosion of this kind of slang alarming.
“This is a problem for everybody,” says Zöe Bisbing, a body-image and eating-disorders psychotherapist. “It has a lot to do with this really, really entrenched anti-fat bias in our culture that normalizes microaggressions toward fat people.”
Complicating the problem, though, is that the jokes are made by and about thin girls. READ MORE
Why “Boy” Culture Is Hurting Boys And Everyone Else (Greater Good)
People are more disconnected from each other than ever. We have a loneliness crisis, not only here in the United States but around the world, fueling discontent, stress, and poor health. Perhaps no one is lonelier or more alienated than men.
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