Body Image of Pupils of Older School Age in Relation to Leisure Time Activities and Healthy Lifestyle Choices

The paper focuses on the importance of body image as a criterion for preventing the abuse of habit-forming substances. Within this context, spending leisure time actively is considered to fit in with the general trend of following and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, which is an essential contributory factor to the health status of an individual. At present, the expectation is that the ability to maintain a healthy lifestyle and prevent lifestyle diseases will be seriously affected by the Internet and by other interventions. The study found that there is indeed a close correlation between body image and the hazardous behaviour of children and adolescents, in particular with regards to eating disorders, thereby confirming the results of many other studies. Children that practice organised sports were also found to have a greater physical and emotional self-concept. However, no evidence could be found for a link between body image and sports, although sports constitute organised leisure time activities. Nevertheless, the correlation between the dissatisfaction with one´s body image and a healthy lifestyle definitely warrants greater interest to be shown in this topic.