Naturism is NOT Pornography

An image of a nude naturist is not pornography. Why? Because the pornographic image is produced with the purpose of creating a sexual arousal in the viewer. In contrast, the naturist is simply a person without clothes. The purpose of the image is the difference. The purpose with the nudity of the naturist was not to create sexual ideas in the mind of the viewer. The person was photographed without clothes to communicate the healthy benefits of living a part of your life without clothes on your body.

The pornographic image is a sexual service. After the image is taken, the model is paid for his or her professional services. The naturist just puts on clothes again and goes back to be among people wearing clothes. Another photo will show a clothed naturist.

Google gives this definition of pornography: "printed or visual material containing the explicit description or display of sexual organs or activity, intended to stimulate erotic rather than aesthetic or emotional feelings."

Perhaps the most common damage from pornography is the twisted perception of people, relationships, and sex that it creates. Pornography teaches unrealistic and inappropriate sexual expectations, decreases satisfaction with monogamy and lowers family loyalties, objectifies and degrades women, links sex with violence and children, encourages promiscuity, and increases susceptibility to sexually acting out in ways harmful to others.

All of this is the opposite of naturism!

Currently, we are all daily bombed with sexually explicit images bordering pornography with the intent of selling anything from cars to antique style furniture. The dangers of this constant flow is similar to the negative impact of pornography:

• Voyeurism: Pornography teaches its users to focus on looking at people instead of forming real relationships. Naturism focuses on making people form relationships that have no sexual element.
• Objectification: Men, women, and children are portrayed as sexual objects, whose worth lies in the size and shape of their body parts. Naturism values people as individuals with different shapes, colours, gender and age.
• Judgement of others: Pornography repeatedly shows people with a certain physical appearance that will sell more pornography. Pornography users slowly begin to judge people’s worth by their physical likeness to these narrow ideals. They feel masculine or feminine only when they are with people deemed beautiful according to this concept of creating sexual arousal, and are less likely to remain committed when their partner goes through life-changes (age, childbearing, etc.) that decrease their youthfulness or their sexy looks.
• Fear of true intimacy: People portrayed in pornographic pictures have no demands or expectations beyond sexual arousal and pleasure. Pornography users do not learn how to form real relationships with others and they become fearful of true intimacy. Naturism teaches the pleasure of being selfless, sacrificing, and committed. Naturists learn to relate emotionally and spiritually to their loved ones.
• Anxiety: Idealized images often found in pornography induce shame and appearance anxiety among both young women and men. In their formative years, these ideals make them feel obligated to compete with pornography in order to receive attention from the opposite sex who become lured by the idealized images that are inaccurate depictions of the other sex - which are often enhanced through computer alteration technology (e.g. air brushing, photoshop). Naturist boosts self confidence and own body acceptance by the mind-blowing experience, that other real people also have very little resemblance to these twisted images.

Can naturism cure people suffering from pornography addiction?

I believe this happens all the time. How many times have I not seen a pornography addict come to visit a naturist resort or join a naturist activity in the pursuit of sexual pleasures mixed with feelings of guilt, fear of being found out with consequences for their family relationships, and legal consequences that is associated with sexualized nudity. But soon, being among real naturists they amazingly quickly start appreciating the values of non-sexual nudity which is at the core of naturism - and the sheer pleasure of real-life-nudity among real-life-people soon blows away their former sexual addiction like a mist in the morning sun.