Celebrity Impact on Post-Pregnancy Body Image

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26081703/?GT1=43001

Most women require some time after giving birth to slowly, and healthily, make their way back to where their bodies were prior to pregnancy. A recent trend that seems to be a competition among celebrities is to get back into prime physique in a few months or less, as highlighted by the recent uproar over Nicole Kidman being declared "hot" just two weeks after giving birth to her daughter.

The effects are pretty universal:

A survey by the San Francisco-based Web site Babycenter.com on the impact of “teeny and toned new celebrity moms” found 31 percent of moms felt angry about the “extra pressure on regular moms to look that way” and 24 percent simply felt depressed.

So how are they able to revert to their pre-pregnancy bodies in such a short time while it seems that the rest of the world requires a more normal time of many months or years? Well, they...

happen to have a personal trainer, personal chef, nutritionist, nanny, night nurse, and three or four full-time assistants.

“Celebs have 24-hour ‘round the clock care,” says Suzanne Schlosberg, mother to 13-month-old twin boys and co-author of “The Active Woman’s Pregnancy Log: A Day-to-Day Diary and Guide to a Fit and Healthy Pregnancy.” “They’ve got somebody to take care of baby while they do their workouts with their $250-an-hour trainer. They’ve got a fancy personal chef creating their perfect 200-calorie meals. It’s not an even playing field. They have all these advantages that real people don’t have.”

One of the biggest differences is that 'round-the-clock care assistance, which means that these celebs can get a solid night's sleep every night. Sleep has long been established as necessary for your body to regulate the hormones that control appetite and metabolism, so it's no wonder that it takes a normal mom who's actually required to be the 'round-the-clock caregiver a bit longer!

While most people, mothers in particular, seem to be in agreement that it's more irritating that celebs are setting such high standards, there are still a few people who are finding it inspiring:

“I don’t feel any pressure to keep up with celebrities because it’s their job to look good,” says Lang-Cline, 42, the co-owner of a creative staffing agency in Columbus, Ohio. “Otherwise they’ll end up with their cellulite on Page One. But I do find it inspiring that I don’t have to stay the flabby lump of goo that I feel I am now. Celebrities show that it’s possible to look good after having a baby. Granted, they’ll probably do it in half the time, but at least it’s possible.”

Among those who are more annoyed, however, lurks a greater concern: namely that being presented with an impossible standard is hurting women's self esteem, and maybe feeding into post-partum depression.

Some women are going the route of the Mommy Makeover and consulting with plastic surgeons to find ways to achieve those impossible standards set by celebrities. Most people either can't afford that option, or aren't fond of it, so there's some good advice to remember:

But the magic bullet approach isn’t necessary, says Dr. Laura E. Riley, director of labor and delivery at Massachusetts General Hospital and author of “You and Your Baby: Pregnancy.” A realistic amount of time — coupled with healthy eating and exercise — will still do the trick.

“It probably takes on average four to six months to lose a normal amount of baby weight gain,” she says. “It took you nine months to put it on. It’s not going to come off in nine weeks.”