The cross-party health and social care committee today launches a survey about body image and the experience of accessing NHS services.

Among questions about the impact on mental and physical health, the survey seeks views on whether the topic of body image and related health impacts receive sufficient attention from the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England, and opinions on the appropriateness of public health messaging on obesity.

The survey will contribute to the ongoing inquiry into the impact of body image on mental and physical health.

Committee chair Jeremy Hunt said: “Everyone cares about how they look but sometimes worries about body image can become enormously distressing, particularly for young people.

“To support our inquiry into body image, we’re asking people to take part in a survey about how concerns about body image can affect their physical and mental health.

“We want to hear about their experiences of accessing NHS services in relation to body image, whether people know where to go to get help, and whether they feel any stigma in seeking support for health issues relating to body image.”

A September 2020 report by the women and equalities found that the majority of people feel negatively about their body image most of the time.

It also concluded that lockdown made people feel worse about their body image.