A New Kind Of Epidemic

Within countries that were once untouched by unrealistic societal standards, eating disorders and psychological problems have become a not just a local, but a global phenomenon. Bordo is able to give credible examples and evidence on why they have become a problem, such as recounting previous personal excursions and providing statistics.

Body image has always been a huge part for women in their lives. In the beginning of the essay Bordo gives a great opening with a good description that open your eyes. She speaks about how a young girl standing in the mirror who thinks she is fat when in actuality she is the right size according to her doctor’s chart. The young lady only thinks she fat because of what she sees on TV and how actress, singers, and artist’s bodies looks. With the media it has people thinking

Teenage girls are at an impressionable time in their lives. Mass Media is a key idea in one of the factors of socialization that become important to teenagers. Teenagers look to the media for a sense of entertainment. Whether it is movies, magazines, or even some aspects of social media, teenagers get a lot of influence from the media’s message. The problem with this is the media has a specific way of doing things and can be negative to a susceptible teenage girl. Media’s way of portraying a woman can be skewed and unrealistic way from what reality is. Teenage girls then have a desire for this look or way. In this essay the three ways I will describe as to why the media can negatively affect a teenage girls body image is by showing

Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America is my chosen book to for the class. Following excerpts and reviews, the book challenges the darker side of medications and what they exactly do to patients. The number of mentally ill has been highest in the past two decades, and it not only plagues adults, but children as well. One would think that the advancements in medicine would prevent this statistic going up, but it has not. Robert Whitaker investigates into the matter and explains the dangers of the medications, such as anti-depressants.

In “Globalization of Eating Disorders“ Susan Bordo accurately uses the concept of globalization to explain the spread of eating disorders across the globe. In Friedman standards, globalization is a system responsible for connecting all types of people at unbelievable speeds. Bordo focuses more on the dominance of the United States. Bordo uses of globalization is very effective in this essay. The example of television in the Fiji island vividly express how influential america is to the world. WIthin 3 years span, cases of eating disorders increased dramatically solely from being exposed to America’s beauty standards through TV. When comparing Bordo’s essay with Friedman’s, the consisty is great. In general, Bordo uses the concept of the globalization

In the article, “The Negative Effects of the Media on Body Image” by Esther Vargas, there were several issues discussed about the negative effects that media has on body image in society. Many girls

In longing to reach the norm many people fall victim to these detrimental illnesses. Sadly, women are more subject to these eating disorders than men, the number of men suffering from eating disorders is on the rise. Our culture puts pressure on each of its inhabitants to attain this ideal body type that is unrealistic for most people. The images that pollute television and magazines make us all feel inadequate if we don't meet the credentials of slenderness; therefore, continuing the role of our society in the development of eating disorders.

Bordo establishes herself as an authority figure through her extensive education in English and women’s studies. In her prolific writing career, Bordo often places emphasis on Western culture and its lasting viewpoints toward gender and the body, and in view of this, Bordo’s argument paves way to influence her audience through her credibility as an expert on women and the body images that plague them. As this authority figure, Bordo claims that the media and cultural influence have created a negative influence on humanity’s conceived standard of beauty, and as a result, have caused the spread of eating disorders.

Chronic dieting, low self-esteem, depression and, high levels of body dissatisfaction were among the major issues women face when addressing their body image (Gingras, Fitzpatrick, & McCargar, 2004). The severity of body image dissatisfaction have increased to such a dangerous state that it was added to the DSM-IV as a disorder now called body dysmorphic disorder (Suissa, 2008). One of the main reasons for the prevalence of these conditions in women was due to contemporary Western media, which serve as one of the major agent in enforcing an ultra-thin figure as the ideal for female beauty (Saraceni & Russell-Mayhew, 2007). These images and models presented by the media have become the epitome of beauty, pushing women who internalized these images to dangerous extent to attain these norms. According to evidence from previous studies, contemporary Western cultures have influenced women to an acquired normative state of discontent with their bodies, which have become the source of maladaptive eating practices, negative psychological outcomes, and, chronic health conditions associated with eating disorders (Snapp, Hensley-Choate, & Ryu, 2012). The seriousness of these body image conditions among youths and women have also led to congressional actions.

1Body Images, Eating Disorders, Cultural Imperialism1beauty is a motivation factors. Since looks are so important; and many adolescents are unhappy with their size and shape, teens with sever body image dissatisfaction, often begin to judge their worth and decide that they have to improve their image and themselves by dieting. "Social pressure that appear to be partly responsible for the number of eating-disordered adolescents" (Robinson, Stephen. March 5, 2010) Also, models who are generally thinner seem to set the standards for the ideal, although unrealistic body type.

On all platforms of media, women and even young girls are oversexualized; thus leading to men viewing women as no more than breasts, vaginas, legs, or any other body part they prefer. Even in current television shows, movies, comic books, and advertisements, women are still depicted as sexual objects, which can damage a woman’s confidence. The oversexualization of women 's bodies can degrade a young woman’s confidence, and when girls try to boost confidence by dressing or acting like the women they see in the media, they are reprimanded for it. Girls cannot be blamed for their sexualization; they are just emulating what they see in the media.

Hudson, Hirripi, Pope and Kessler’s (2007) research indicates that the average onset of anorexia nervosa is 19 years old, but can develop as young as 14 years old, and women are more likely to develop anorexia nervosa than men. Some studies indicate that anorexia affects whites more than Hispanics, African Americans and Asians; however it crosses cultures and socially diverse populations (APA, 2013). According to the DSM 5, Anorexia nervosa predominantly occurs in developed, high-income countries such as in the United States, as well as in many European countries, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. Individuals who present with weight concerns that develop eating and feeding disorders varies substantially across cultural contexts. One study indicated that that “the ‘spread’ of Western values regarding slimness (fat phobia) is primarily responsible for the development of anorexia nervosa in non-Western societies” (Rieger et al., 2001). Rieger et al (2001) also looked at the medical records of Asian women and found the absence of fat phobia; the rationale for dietary restriction was commonly related to other external factors. The WHO (2004) also reports that female athletes, ballet students, fashion models and culinary students are at risk of developing anorexia nervosa; unhealthy dieting and society’s

“The attention-grabbing pictures of various high-flying supermodels and actors on different magazine covers and advertisements go a long way in influencing our choices” (Bagley). The media is highly affective to everyone, although they promote an improper image of living. Research proved says those with low self-esteem are most influenced by media. Media is not the only culprit behind eating disorders. However, that does not mean that they have no part in eating disorders. Media is omnipresent and challenging it can halt the constant pressure on people to be perfect (Bagley). Socio-cultural influences, like the false images of thin women have been researched to distort eating and cause un-satisfaction of an individual’s body. However, it

An infectious disease outbreak is happening in New York City. No one knows why or how these diseases are suddenly popping up. An endemic spreading rampantly in America’s biggest city. This type of Science fiction story can only be written by one man. That man is Robin Cook, who’s a renowned author of science fiction books. Cook’s books have sold over 400 million copies worldwide and many of them have been New York Time’s Bestsellers. Not only is Robin Cook an author, he is also a physician. This title gives him a unique perspective in writing science fiction books. Not only is he an established writer but he can also use the knowledge he has attained as a physician to give credibility to the books that he writes. Cook 's medical thrillers are designed, in part, to keep the public aware of both the technological possibilities of modern medicine and the ensuing socio-ethical problems which come along with it. The best example of one of his books that fit that description is the book, Contagion. Contagion deals with various infectious diseases and the suspicious outbreak of these diseases in a New York hospital. I choose this specific book because I enjoy when you can blend a sense of realism with a sense of science fiction. Cook’s background enables him to tell an interesting story that isn’t completely out of the realm of possibility of actually happening. A science fiction story is always more interesting if there’s even the slimmest of possibilities of the story coming to

Of the many diseases spread by insects, none are actually caused by the insects themselves but by other organisms passed on when they feed or bite. Insects are capable of spreading diseases caused by many different types of microorganisms including bacteria, viruses, protozoan and others. Mosquitoes have earned the title of "the most deadly creature on earth." This is due to the fact that they spread serious epidemic diseases such as Malaria, Yellow Fever, African Sleeping Sickness, and West Nile Virus.