Having a child can be one of the happiest times in a woman’s life. Bringing a child into the world comes with both emotional and physical changes that can affect a woman forever. Of course, the more noticeable changes are physical: the glow, the growing belly and often times a little weight gain.
These things are common in all women, and like most other commonplace occurrences in life, celebrity women are scrutinized for these natural, physical changes that all pregnant women go through.
Female celebrity weight gain and weight loss always finds its way to the front of the tabloids because, for some reason, women are never the “right” weight. It becomes especially ridiculous when these women are pregnant, and suddenly something that is normal for all women to experience during pregnancy becomes a public spectacle.
Y'all know Kim K pregnant, y'all need to chill pic.twitter.com/GHCgbt6iCT
— Young Real (@0Chills) September 2, 2015
One of the most recent incidences in the media is the reaction to Kim Kardashian’s outfit at the 2015 VMAs. Twitter and tabloids went to town on Kim K’s dress and all the weight she gained through her pregnancy, and her supposed “binge eating” donuts. Regardless of your feelings towards Kardashian, commenting on her weight is completely unnecessary. Even when she was pregnant with North West, media constantly poked fun at how much weight she gained. Some women are more inclined to gain weight than others during pregnancy, and if Kim K happens to carry heavier, it is no one's place to comment.
The attention to female body image in the media is already an issue, and now women are being told that they need to look a certain way when they are pregnant as well. Attention has been called to the weight of a number of celebrity women like Mariah Carey, Jessica Simpson and Miranda Lambert, just to name a few. You can even Google lists of how many pounds these women have gained over the course of their pregnancy.
New Flash: Women gain weight when they’re pregnant. You’re not going to go up to your pregnant coworker and criticize her weight gain. If a pregnant woman wants to go to a donut shop and eat three dozen donuts, she should be able to do so. She is eating and providing nutrients for two, and if the baby need the fats and sugars that donuts provide, then she should be able to do it without people accusing her of eating her feelings. If anyone — pregnant or not — wants to eat three dozen donuts, that’s still none of our business.
Bringing a life into this world is one of the most rewarding and incredible thing a person can do, and no one should be judged because of the potential weight they gain when they are growing a life inside them. The issue of body images in women is gaining attention, but seeing the disrespect for women for gaining weight through one of the most natural processes is pretty low. Society can't expect to change our perception of body image if even pregnant women can’t escape the scrutiny.
Related Links:
Five YouTube personalities that focus on body positivity, not body shaming
Ex-model Cara Delevingne shapes society, shows us the error in our ways
Reach the columnist at ybrewste@asu.edu or follow @jbrewzki on Twitter.
Editor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.
Want to join the conversation? Send an email to opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com. Keep letters under 300 words and be sure to include your university affiliation. Anonymity will not be granted.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
