Paula Cruz of Bellevue, has been named the second prize winner in the National Eating Disorders Association PSA contest.

“The idea behind the PSA competition was to give entrants a voice and ask them to create a PSA – focused on a positive, thought-provoking, creative message – asking, ‘How would you talk about it?’,” said Lynn Grefe, president and CEO of NEDA.

Cruz, 18, says what you see in her winning PSA is what she sees everyday —friends putting themselves down, criticizing every flaw.  Self-loathing has become the norm, she said, and she wants to do her part to get people to change their attitudes to positive ones and see the real beauty in each of them.

With help from her video editing instructor at the local Boys & Girls Club, Cruz created her PSA in the hope that her message will help others struggling with eating disorders and negative body image.

The winning video is available online.

Winners were selected by a NEDA Celebrity Media Judges Panel, including: George Larrimore, managing editor of Access Hollywood; Whitney Thompson, the first plus-sized winner of America’s Next Top Model; Jean Kilbourne, an internationally recognized, award-winning author (So Sexy So Soon: The New Sexualized Childhood and What Parents Can Do To Protect Their Kids) and documentarian (Killing Us Softly, Slim Hopes); and the board members of NEDA.

Cruz received an award of $50 for her PSA.