Anorexia: Role of Media

Various studies have demonstrated that when women are shown both photographs or TV commercials with extremely slender models they indicate an increase in dissatisfaction with their body (Crouch & Degelman, 1998). A study regarding social media specifically, was conducted by researchers at the University of Haifa on 248 girls ages 12 to 19; they found that the more time girls spent looking at pictures on Facebook, the more they suffered from eating disorders such as Anorexia, as well as other conditions including a heightened urge to diet and lose weight (University of Haifa, 2011). Media access is

One reason mass media is so effective at portraying unrealistic body types as normal is because the mass media helps to set what is perceived as normal. In an article about the mass media’s role in body image disturbance and eating disorders, J. Kevin Thompson and Leslie Heinberg state, “A sociocultural model emphasizes that the current societal standard for thinness, as well as other difficult-to-achieve standards of beauty

The media group that retouches images skews the “normal” body image of people through many of its outlets, including models in advertising and magazines, and actors in TV and movie productions. “The average model portrayed in the media is approximately 5’11” and 120 pounds. By contrast, the average American woman is 5’4” and 140 pounds” (Holmstrom, 2004). This statistic shows how the media manipulates consumers into believing that because they are not what the average model looks like, they are not living up to a certain standard which implies that they need to look like that to be beautiful. Another research fact that shows a similar concept is that, “In the United States, 94% of female characters in television programs are thinner than the average American woman, with whom the media frequently associate happiness, desirability, and success in life” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This association of female thinness and happiness, desirability and success makes consumers believe they must achieve this unrealistic thinness to achieve more ultimate goals and fulfillment in life. “The media also explicitly instruct how to attain thin bodies by dieting, exercising, and body-contouring surgery, encouraging female consumers to believe that they can and should be thin” (Yamamiya et al., 2005). This idealization of thinness in the media is seen so much, and is extremely harmful to women’s self confidence and is often associated with body image dissatisfaction, which can be a precursor to social anxiety, depression, eating disturbances, and poor self-esteem (Yamamiya et al.,

Symbolic Interactionism is a theory focusing on the approach that has evolved from social behaviorism and that stresses the symbolic nature of human interaction (p. 46). In society, there are norms and expectations that people are expected to follow and live by and trying to achieve this ideal self-image, people sometime behave in a self-destructing behavior. Because the media creates an image that we are suppose to fit, people will go to the extreme measures to meet this look even if it involves developing an eating disorder (DeGroat).

Anorexia has the highest mortality rate of any mental illness. Of American elementary school girls who read magazines, 69% say that the pictures influence their concept of the ideal body shape. 47% of the girls say the pictures make them want to lose weight (Martin). It is no secret that the media has had a hand in how society defines beauty. By sending out a message to us with unrealistic images the media is causing us to chase illusions of an unobtainable lifestyle. This can be dangerous and wreak havoc on our health and our self-esteem. Mass media has been manipulating photos by using digital alterations with tools such as photo shop to change celebrity’s appearances. Almost all of mass media photographs are digitally manipulated in one

When it comes to disturbances in a person’s diet or food intake where the person is afraid of eating and becoming overweight, it is hard not to feel spiteful towards the media (Spettigue & Henderson, 2004). Many researches have tried to figure out who are the individuals at risk towards the media’s messages. Eating disorders are psychological disorders that are distinguished by abnormal or disturbed eating habits. The most common types of eating disorders are anorexic nervosa, bulimia nervosa and binge-eating. Victims of such disorders are usually teenagers who are unhappy with their own body shapes or sizes, especially in females. With the constant evolution of technology, media now plays a huge role in advertising and it seems to be playing a huge role in placing importance on how ideal body shapes should be like.

Eating disorders have been haunting women and men alike. However, has this been impacted by media? Since Marilyn Monroe’s reign came to an end, it seems as though the ideal symbol of beauty has transformed into thinness. The National Eating Disorder Association states that numerous studies have linked exposure to the “thin ideal” in mass media to body dissatisfaction, internalization of the thin ideal, and disordered eating among women.

Many people suffer from eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, binge-eating disorder, and bulimia nervosa because of what they view in the media in today’s society. As the world becomes more modernized with the help of the media, many people are affected by what the media views as perfect concerning body type, and what they perceive as perfect. The media can therefore have profound effects on the judgment of many people and cause them to change their eating habits, which can lead to dreadful eating disorders. This topic is extremely important to discuss because the media has this effect on many people, and it is a real-world situation that may be able to be helped. For example, the media could portray images of more realistic body types on television or in magazines. By studying this topic, insight can be gained into exactly how the media affects people psychologically. These psychological impacts can then be used to explain how these eating disorders are developed. The media’s effect on eating disorders is a very interesting and relevant issue. Additionally, with the research gained by studying this topic, the media could be improved or altered so as to not have this negative effect on a person’s image of herself or

Media has a significant impact on body weight and disordered eating. This one time isolated syndrome of “eating disorders” is now emerging as a place of importance in our society.

In the recent past, eating disorders have become prevalent in the society especially among teenagers and young adults.The rate of development of new cases of eating disorders has been increasing since 1950’s. Many have deemed the media responsible for the upsurge in cases. According to the Oxford dictionary, media is defined as ‘communication channels through which news, entertainment, education, data, information are disseminated’.It is very important to discern eating disorders from disordered eating.Disordered eating involves an abnormal relationship with food; while, an eating disorder is a psychiatric illness that has more to do with a complex set of emotional and psychological issues, than with food and nutrition.Eating disorders are

Many individual’s today would argue that most health problems develop from media. For example, the Modeling Industry is mainly nothing but tall and very slender women. Most would agree that adolescent females see the size of most models and assume that is what is considered beauty. Media does not promote anorexia to distort women’s body images. Most women that starve themselves do not do it because of television, movies, or magazines, etc. They starve themselves to make them feel better and to uplift their self-esteem. Media does not play a role in anorexia because of three main reasons: environmental factors, exercising, and dieting.

Remaining thin is perceived by many, especially young ladies, as being attractive, sexy and socially fit. It is a perception that impacts significantly on anorexia, as the quest to remain thin creates pace, leading to under nutrition in the quest to remain fit. Apart from maintain good looks, the media also impacts on the anorexia conditions by revealing the detrimental consequences of being overweight. Overweight leading to obesity is a global concern that continues to challenge the health discipline. However, avoiding eating also referred as anorexia is not the optimum model for controlling the overweight. The media has failed to recognize the aspect, an element evidently visible through the numerous advertisements. Spotting an advert showing fat individuals is approximately zero, unless the advert is showing the adverse consequences of obesity and

Seeing overly skinny models in the media does not enhance women’s self-esteem, self-worth, or self-image. The degree of thinness exhibited by models is both unachievable and biologically inappropriate and provides unhelpful role model for women.

Nowadays, the standard for the attractive or adequate body as portrayed by media is slim bodies. Media indicate thin models and celebrities in Ads and TV in situation that attract women persuade in order to persuade them to buy products (Hendricks, 2002). As a result, enormous viewers of mass media it build up the thought that being thin that is the society will be acceptable with, so they start to compare themselves unconsciously with models and feel that they are not satisfied with their body shape, because they being convince with that in order to be acceptable from people or be happy the must to be similar to the model, in that case she has same body shape (Kinnally&Vonderen, 2012).

Everyone at some point has been self conscious about the way they look and about their physique. However, many take a step too far and become obsessed with it. Such as the men who are usually affected by Muscle Dysmorphia disorder in which an individual tends to be unsatisfied with their body and stresses about being small and undeveloped, which is the opposite of anorexia. In turn it has a negative impact on the daily lives of those affected. It is often caused by the ideal body image portrayed of men in media.