Shock as 5-year-old calls ice cubes a ‘calorie-free’ snack as new scheme starts in schools

Two Birmingham entrepreneurs are on a mission to boost children’s body image – after being shocked to hear a five-year-old call ice cubes a ‘calorie-free’ snack. Unfortunately, this is common among children and teenagers, according to Romy and Katie, who run dance fitness workshops to help steer youngsters away from negative body image.

Romy Ashmore-Hills, 26, and Katie Evans, 25, set up Hungry 2 Move last October. The pair travel around Birmingham schools running dance workshops and talking to students about body positivity.

They revealed that a staggering amount of inner-city children feel self-conscious about their bodies and refuse to participate in physical activities. Issues including eating disorders and inactive lifestyles are also high on the list when talking to young people.

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Romy, from Moseley, said: “We grew up with social media as a small part of our childhood but saw the effect it had on our body image. she saw it as a good way to build a positive body image.

“We want to use dance in a positive way to instill confidence. Some studies show that boys suffer from muscle dysmorphia where they want to gain more muscle mass through unhealthy eating habits or supplements.

“Girls feel pressured to stay in prepubescent bodies, almost all teenagers won’t post a selfie without a filter. School children in year three want to be at the front of a dance session, by year six they are more reserved and will move you to the back.”

Romy shared an experience at an inner-city primary school where a five-year-old child called ice cubes a healthy snack because they were like “doritos without the calories”, emphasizing the importance of reaching children at an early age. Romy and Katie were stunned by the “shocking statement”, believing the child had heard it from a family member or someone’s phone.

It also doesn’t help that, according to the Good Childhood Report 2021, a The survey by the Mental Health Foundation found that 37% of teenagers felt angry and 31% felt ashamed of their body image. Over a third of adults said they felt anxious (34%) or depressed (35%) about their body image.

Depressingly, 51% of girls aged 7-10 were ‘very happy’ with the way they looked, but by 11-16 this had dropped to 16%. Romy said: “Kids absorb everything they hear and it’s really damaging. It shows the impact of social media and adults need to be careful what children hear.”

Romy believes that telling teenagers to stay away from social media is ineffective because it is such an important part of their lives. Instead, the two are focusing on dissecting social media use with them, hoping they’ll recognize the negative effects as they get older.

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Romy continued: “Parents need to be aware of what their children are watching and limit their time on social media. It helps to follow the social media accounts of people with different body shapes, different lifestyles that promote positive messages.

“If you see a post that makes you feel bad about yourself, don’t look at it. Be selective about what you see, we can curate our own social media feeds in a positive way.”