 News
27th February 2008
Celebrity
yummy mummies make us feel like failuresMore than two thirds of
mothers believe the likes of Madonna and Victoria Beckham are putting mothers
under pressure to live up to an unrealistic ideal, a survey has found. Four
in five say they feel pressure to look good and feel sexy for their partner and
more than a third say they feel the need to be a successful career woman as well.
Almost half of those polled regarded Victoria Beckham as an unrealistic
role model (42 per cent) followed by Angelina Jolie (11 per cent) and Madonna
(9 per cent). They, of course, run their seemingly perfect lives with help from
an army of staff, minders and gofers. The survey, carried out for a cosmetics
firm, found mothers are feeling under pressure on a variety of fronts. Becoming
more aware of the environment is the most pressing domestic concern for many.
Recycling and looking for local produce worry 50 per cent of mothers, while celebrity
chefs such as Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson have left more than 75 per cent
concerned about what they are feeding their children. Many mothers feel
like second rate citizens, with 67 per cent of the 8,500 questioned believing
that when out and about they are seen as a mother first and woman second. Just
over 32 per cent believe that men no longer notice them since they've had a child.
Psychologist David Moxon said: "When an ideal like 'yummy mummy' is forced
on society, particularly when it's spearheaded with unrealistic celebrity role
models, it alters expectations and attitudes towards motherhood. "When
society starts to place idealistic views of how mums should appear it not only
leaves them feeling disillusioned with their own lives it can also lead to partners,
family members and friends being dismissive when mums in their own life don't
live up to these unrealistic expectations." It appears that many families
are oblivious to the pressure the mothers in their lives are under, with 87 per
cent of adults believing they had plenty of time to concentrate on themselves.
Mothers, however, begged to differ. Those polled said they had little time
to devote to their own interests, with 89 per cent claiming they didn't even have
the time to carry out a beauty regime. Almost 70 per cent felt their partner
didn't appreciate them. And a sorry one in ten claimed their pets were
the ones who made them feel most valued. Where to next?
| 
