THE SUMMER holidays are well underway across Yorkshire, and while many children will be outside enjoying the sunshine, others will spend more time online, many on social media, to stay in touch with their friends and for entertainment.

We know that this time of year often means children could be exposed to more online content which could make them feel negatively about their body image.

The NSPCC's Childline service has seen an increase in the number of young people with concerns about eating and body image. From April 2021 to March 2022, Childline delivered 5,085 counselling sessions on these topics - up six per cent from 4,787 in 2019/20.

Common topics in these contacts included feeling self-conscious about their weight or looks, controlling their eating to deal with mental health issues, calorie counting, becoming obsessed with exercise and worrying what others think of their eating habits.

A study by Ofcom recently looked at children's media lives during the national COVID lockdown and found most children lacked structure and tended to fill their time with online activities. The study also notes that body conscious exercise content became popular among teenage girls during this time.

Over the past two years Childline's trained counsellors have heard from an increasing number of children in Yorkshire and across the UK who feel negatively about their body image. Some of these negative feelings came from seeing images of other people on social media.

Social media is sadly full of images and content that could make a child feel like they aren't good enough or that they need to change their body to be accepted by others or feel happier in themselves. Features such as filters and body shaping tools can warp a child's view of someone's body and make them feel inadequate, and they might not realise some images aren't real.

Our counsellors are always there to help young people who are struggling to feel good about themselves, but there are also conversations that families can have at home.

Parents should remind their children that everyone is different so they shouldn't compare themselves to other people and encourage them to ignore negative or mean comments. It's important to remind young people that we all have the right to be treated with respect.

To boost their confidence, get them to write down three things they like about themselves and read it every morning, and suggest they can focus on hobbies or things they enjoy to help build their confidence and self-esteem.

It's natural for children and young people to worry about the way they look sometimes. Especially as they grow and go through puberty. But no child should feel like they have to change their body to fit in and it's essential they remember that not everything they see online is real.

Be sure to remind your child that they can share their thoughts and worries with other young people on Childline's message boards and read about how others have dealt with similar worries.

If your child is struggling, I'd encourage you to have an open conversation with them about how they are feeling. Show them how to mute social media accounts that make them feel bad about themselves and remind them that they aren't alone and that there are people here to support them, including Childline.

The Childline website also has advice on any concerns or questions children may have on body image and eating disorders. Young people can also speak to our counsellors through the website at www.childline.org.uk, or speak to our trained counsellors on the phone at any time.