Wednesday 5 April 2006

Pic of the day: In lieu of actual religious girls, I give you this happy girl from The Sims 2. Her name is Mathilde, by the way. You can see from her clothes that she is not all-out religious, but that's OK since she is a Sim. Their creator loves them anyway.

Healthy religious girls

"The more religious a Jewish girl is, the less likely she is to suffer from poor self-image and eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia, according to a new University of Haifa study." Read the full story here.

In my experience, this is not restricted to Jews. Don't take this the wrong way, but it is my personal opinion that pious women are generally more sexy. This is certainly not to say that I spent my years among my Christian friends in a state of continual lust! As I've mentioned elsewhere sex is not really an option for me. Also my religion (Christianity) takes a dim view on lusting after other people than your spouse, so we all went out of our way to minimize that sort of thing. The whole Church was like that, which helped.

But even so, I maintain that these seriously God-fearing young women were (and probably still are) objectively more attractive, not just because of their behavior but also physically -- they just plain look healthier than the average. (Of course there are exceptions in both directions; I'm speaking generally, and not even visualizing anyone in particular as I dictate this.) And I think a big part of the "looking healthy" comes from not obsessing over food.

As the article points out, the Western world is obsessed with food and body image... particularly body mass. Ironically this can lead to either anorexia or obesity, depending on your personality and environment. It is a well known fact that trying to not think about something makes it very hard to think about anything else. Knowing that you cannot eat makes you feel so much hungrier. Also, if you find yourself a bit on the chubby side after a while, it is easy to give up and think 'there is no hope for me, I am doomed to be a fat cow' and then drown your sorrows in food.

In contrast, the pious girl knows that she will not be judged based on her weight and shape. Rather she will be judged by God based on her thoughts and deeds, whether they are good or evil, and whether she is bound to the Earth or free for Heaven. Insofar as judgment from humans counts to her at all (and let's be honest, it probably does a bit for almost everyone) it will still be based on whether she is good (acting like a good person, at least) and pious and humble. The ability to bear children and raise them probably also counts, and generally looking and acting like a woman. Being thinner than average is simply so far down on the list as to not be a concern in daily life, if it is seen as a benefit at all.

The result is that these women eat when they are hungry and it is mealtime, they enjoy the food and the company, and then they go on with their lives. Most of them end up chubbier than the models in the fashion magazines... and thank God for that! What looks good in an artificial catalog and in daily life are two very different things. So these girls looked healthy and natural, which is exactly what makes them attractive. It probably doesn't hurt that they dress modestly -- provocative clothing is generally not made for the well rounded, but simple and feminine clothes fit them excellently.

Of course it is still possible to become obese even if you are a serious Christian (or Jew or whatever), if you have it in your genes. I have seen a few examples of it. It is really like any other inherited disease. But that is a different matter and not the topic for today. Actually I think I have said what I wanted to say. Feedback is welcome, as usual.