Ballet Dance Research Paper

Ballet has positive and negative effects on both physical and mental health. Ballet is a unique art form that originated in France. This art form uses precise movements, steps and gestures, as well as light, fluid, and graceful movements provide a stimulating performance for its audience. Ballet dancers are incredibly hard-working and have a deep passion for their profession. These dancers are in the studio for long hours during the day, 6-7 days a week, striving for perfection in everything they do. To say they are dedicated is an understatement; ballet dancers make every decision with their profession on the mind to make sure they are the best that they can be. From a young age, dancers develop a strong discipline which keeps them working
Comparing with all the other styles of dance, ballet burns the most calories (Cipolla, “Dance’s Effects on the Human Body & Mind”). Ballerinas can burn up to 432 calories per hour while engaging in this activity (Cipolla). During ballet dancing the development of long, lean muscles rather than big, bulky muscles is necessary. Having a strong core also helps dancers to develop a precise sense of balance and center of gravity. This is useful as a dancer ages, because a leading cause of injury in older people is from falling on brittle bones. Ballet dancers know how to control and align their muscles correctly so they have good posture. In time, poor posture can also cause a misalignment in the spine and lead to even more pain (Cipolla). Due to the dancers’ strong posture, back pain is lessened compared to that of non-dancers the same age. “Flexibility or limberness refers to the absolute range of movement in a joint, or series of joints, and length in muscles that cross the joints to induce a bending movement or motion” (Taylor). Dancers are less likely to get strained muscles because their wide range of motion and flexibility allows them stretch past the point of the average human. Dancing is as much mental as physical. Therefore, there are mental aspects that happen to ballet dancers as
There is a common drive to be thin by society, the director, and the individual when performing as a ballet dancer. A certain body type is required to be maintained by many ballet company directors. The need for this body type pushes dancers to eat in unhealthy ways. As said by Taylor, “Many engage in some form of dysfunctional eating due to the physical demands woven into the fabric of the dance world, especially in ballet” (Taylor). In fact, recently it was found that “dancers are at the highest risk of developing eating disorders” (Taylor). Dance on the human body seriously effects weight control. In an effort to stay thin, ballerinas may take up cigarette smoking because nicotine in cigarettes reduces your appetite (Drappo). Eating disorders are complex psychiatric illnesses that can cause comorbidity of other mental disorders to occur. Other mental illnesses that may develop with an eating disorder are anxiety, depression, and OCD. Anorexia is a very stereotypical eating disorder for ballerinas, but the most common eating disorder for ballerinas is a sort of unidentified eating disorder that does not fall into any other eating disorders’ requirements for diagnosis. Although being a ballet dancer requires a lot of mental strength, there are also some positive mental aspects to this