Lindsay (left) and Lexie (right) Kite will be presenting on Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016. (Matt Clayton Photography)
Beauty Redefined founders Lindsay and Lexie Kite will seek to empower listeners with their lecture at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 25, at the Wilkinson Center's Garden Court.
Their lecture will be hosted by BYU's Women's Services and Resources as the last of three presentations during National Eating Disorders Awareness week, which focuses on empowerment and overall health.
Even though their message may be contrary to messages in the media and interpersonal communication, Lexie said, 'We are excited to be able to help, hopefully a large crowd of people, to recognize that women are more than bodies and that when we can better learn that, then it helps us to be so much happier and healthier and more empowered at the end of the day.'
'We love to pack the place,' Lexie said. Although their research is focused on women and girls she said, 'We speak to guys all the time because we need you as allies.'
'We did our Ph.D.s in media and body image work,' Lexie said, 'so we help people understand that when you can learn to respect your body as more than just a decoration or an ornament that you can learn to take better care of yourself.'
Megan Kennedy is a senior studying dietetics at BYU. She is also the Nutrition and Wellness Specialist for Women's Services and Resources at BYU. (Coben Hoch)
Beauty Refined tries reroute its audience's focus away from physical appearance to emphasize the importance of other human traits.
BYU dietetics student Megan Kennedy is the nutrition and wellness specialist for BYU's Women's Services and Resources. She said weight should not be the sole indicator of health. There is a lot more to health than just weight. When individuals only equate weight with health, it can cause a lot of negative behaviors and thoughts.
Kennedy explained that the Kite's definition of beauty is one of empowerment and of appreciating differences. Kennedy said it presents the idea that 'your worth and what you can do is not based on how you look, and you are more than a body to look at.'
Kennedy thinks that the media is one of the main sources of negative pressure in relation to body image, but that society and the media are moving away from promoting a harmful body image. She used Barbie's new dolls with varying body types as an example.
Lexie and her sister also believe that measurements such as heart rate and cholesterol levels are more important than waist size or BMI and hope individuals will focus more on overall health than external measurements. Lexie pointed out that according to current outside research 'your activity level is a much better indicator of your health and fitness than anything else.'