Being Thin, Petite, And Attractive Is Driving Young Women

Every single day women are faced with the questions of whether they are pretty enough, skinny enough, whether men are attracted to them, whether they can be loved or not, and whether people think they are beautiful. Images of “beautiful” females are plastered all over the media, commercials, Internet, movies, TV shows, ad campaigns, etc. In today’s society the “perfect female proportions” are nearly impossible for one to healthily obtain, but this does not stop women of all ages to going through impossible measures in order to be one step closer to what they consider “perfection.” For many girls all ages, shapes, sizes, around the world, eating disorders are becoming more prevalent for weight

It is apparent that with the increasing popularity of social media today, there has been a shift in dietary changes within our society. Individuals are subconsciously changing how and what they eat. The question arises, why are so many young women dissatisfied with their bodies, despite their size? Although there are several forces believed to play a role in this dissatisfaction such as peer criticism and parental influences, the thin-ideal body is dominating the media (Grabe, Ward, & Hyde, 2008). Thinness is largely emphasized and praised for women in magazines, television shows, movies and commercials (Stice & Shaw, 1992). Anorexia Nervosa is an eating disorder that stems from this ubiquitous obsession to be thin and is often associated with a pathological fear of gaining weight, distorted self-body image and emaciation (The American Heritage® Science Dictionary).

Eating disorders in the United States are becoming more and more prominent as the years go by. Up to 24 million people in the United States suffer from eating disorders (ANAD, 2015), according to a secondary source research by the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD), the oldest and the most prominent organization aimed at fighting various eating disorders in the United States. Prominently, eating disorders in adolescents continue to be a serious problem and may result in premature death or life-long medical and psychosocial morbidity (Vale, B., Brito, S., Paulos, L., & Moleiro, P., 2014). According to a peer-reviewed, primary source by eating disorder specialists, eating disorders are classified according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition , as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and eating disorder not otherwise specified (Vale, B., Brito, S., Paulos, L., & Moleiro, P., 2014). The two major eating disorders, anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, are very common amongst adolescents, specifically young girls. While the symptoms of anorexia nervosa is more evident through the dramatic change in body weight, bulimia nervosa can be overlooked as many with the disease have a normal body weight (Mulheim, 2012).

Beauty standards in the media are one of many reasons feeding and eating disorders are a rising problem. The unrealistic body types of being extremely thin, in pop culture, are influential factors for many teens, especially teen girls. According to the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5), anorexia nervosa is a “restriction of energy intake, intense fear of gaining weight, and a disturbance in the perception of one’s body size” (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Individuals diagnosed with anorexia tend to place a high value on their shape and weight, which can interfere with their daily lives. Individuals diagnosed tend to view of their body shape in a distorted representation. The motivation to become

Girls especially are told that they are supposed to look how famous people look, but are not told how vastly edited and corrected the models in the pictures are. Today, women as young as 11 and 12 have began developing eating disorders due to the constant media bombardment telling them to look a certain way—incredibly skinny—which forces them into starvation. Psychologists have coined the new disorder ‘”body image disturbance syndrome” or BIDS. BIDS is characterized by the incessant feeling of being ‘fat’ when someone is perfectly healthy usually turning to one of two options: anorexia or bulimia. Anorexia is the act of not eating to achieve a body image, but this often results in gross malnourishment. On the other hand, bulimia is characterized by binge eating large meals followed by self-induced vomiting. The motivation behind bulimia is that if they keep the food in their body just long enough to absorb the nutrients, they can vomit the actual bulk of the food that makes them look overweight. The sad reality of the fact is that not only are the nutrients not completely absorbed until they reach the intestines, but the stomach acid brought forth with their vomit virtually rots away their

It was very interesting to find that those with anorexia nervosa find more positives about their disorder rather than more negatives. Serpell (1999) states that, “One of the most interesting features of anorexia nervosas which sets it apart from many other conditions is the highly valued nature of anorexic symptoms. This is expressed in patients’ generally positive beliefs about their condition and contributes to their ambivalence about treatment (pg. 177). I think that with this article, it makes it more difficult for researchers to really find an effective treatment plan for those with anorexia nervosa partly because they find so many positive beliefs about their disorder and partly because maybe those with the disorder may not take treatment seriously or it may be more difficult to treat because they think so highly of their

Anorexia Nervosa is an emotional disorder that causes its victims to have an obsessive desire to lose weight by refusing to eat. It is known to be the third most common eating disorder among adolescents. Many who suffer from the disorder have a strong fear of gaining weight and they 're very determined to prevent any weight gain. AN patients are also incapable of recognizing the severity of their condition. In the article entitled, "A Factor Analysis of the Meanings of Anorexia Nervosa: Intrapsychic, Relational, and Avoidant Dimensions and Their Clinical Correlates", Enrica Marzola explains, "AN sufferers often refuse treatments, show poor compliance with therapy leading to high dropout rates, relapse, and high mortality" (Marzola 2). Marzola examines how many patients become very attached to their illness and do not wish to be recovered from it. In addition, Not only do many AN patients believe that the disorder has help them gain their ideal body image, but they 've also described their starvation as a way to escape from any negative emotions, strengthen their identity, and reveals their distress. Enrica Marzola also addresses, "These instruments confirmed that AN sufferers experience a

Girls are indoctrinated at a very young age that the well known Barbie doll is how a woman is supposed to look, which includes no fat, but large breasts, and due to that false view of a woman’s body, it is more than likely that young girls today will approach puberty with a negative body image. Although children can develop eating disorders as early as 6 years old, it is typically the teen years where it becomes out of control. Dr. Jonathon Rader says that “more than half of teenaged girls are, or think they should be, on diets. They want to lose all or some of the forty pounds that females naturally gain between 8 and 14. About three percent of these teens go too far, becoming anorexic or bulimic” (Rader). Almost everyone has heard of the terms “anorexic” and “bulimic” whether it was on TV or in a magazine, but not many people know the true facts and dangers that go along with them. They also might not even realize that there are other types of eating disorders that people are dealing with, some of which are not even specified. Exactly what are eating disorders?

In the words of American psychologist Mary Pipher, “When unnatural thinness became attractive, girls did unnatural things to be thin”(“A Quote by Mary Pipher”). There are three main types of eating disorders: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder. An eating disorder is a mental illness that affects at least 30 million people of all ages and genders in the U.S. every year (“Eating Disorder Statistics”). Of the number of factors that may lead to an eating disorder, the media is an extremely prevalent causative. It portrays an ideal body image that is unrealistic for most people, acts as a trigger for eating disorders in people who may have been prone, and although positive measures are being taken, the overall impact of

Eating disorders take the lives of millions of teenagers and adults each year, recently becoming the highest mortality rate of any mental illness – but why? Choosing not to eat appears to be a problem with an obvious solution; how could so many Americans be suffering from something that could easily be avoided? The answer is simple — eating disorders are not weight-loss plans gone wrong; they are serious illnesses that pose great health risks. Simply skipping meals does not begin to describe the different aspects of this disease. Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, and binge eating are only a few of the many types of eating disorders that effect millions of individuals each year. In most cases, the victims of these illnesses have extremely low self-confidence and view themselves as overweight, regardless of their actual size. Researchers and scientists have gathered different statistics on the causes of abnormal eating habits. While there is no obvious or direct motive, these dietary issues can be the result of

When the topic of eating disorders (ED), anorexia, bulimia, starving, purging, or any other form of self harm is brought into an everyday conversation, it is simply looked at as nothing out of them norm and is just brushed off as if the topic was concerning what the President had for lunch that day. At first glance, the average person would probably conclude that the main reason eating disorders are so noted in young women today is simply due to the fact that the media puts so much pressure on these women to be “perfect”. Eating disorders are a very prominent and common factor in our society, it is not something anyone can really evade. There are many theories as to what causes eating disorders. Although doctors and ED specialists cannot

The media’s false portrayal of body image has a great influence on the development of eating disorders. There are three types of eating disorders; anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and binge eating. Eating disorders are major issues in today’s society. Instead of people using the media to influence good eating habits, they use it to influence bad eating habits. The numbers of people who have an eating disorder are rising at an alarming rate. It affects not only women, but also men, teens, and young children of all ages. It is not surprising that the number of young children who have an eating disorder is increasing each year. This is an issue that people do not take seriously. The media gets the attention to continue to

Anorexia nervosa, a medical condition defined by an abnormal or pronounced lack of appetite, has become a household recognized condition due to its prevalence and impact. Anorexia nervosa is a major eating disorder that disrupts everyday life, resulting in extreme thinness, hormonal imbalances, behavioral signs, and health issues that can lead to death. While the disease strikes across all gender, races, and classes, the victims affected are typically young, healthy, and attractive women of successful families. The average girl affected usually ages between thirteen and nineteen years old (Landau 3). This disorder has increased rapidly over the last ten years, becoming more common each year (Landau 2-3). Women faced with both a biological

Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that consists of self-regulated food restriction in which the person strives for thinness and also involves distortion of the way the person sees his or her own body. An anorexic person weighs less than 85% of their ideal body weight. The prevalence of eating disorders is between .5-1% of women aged 15-40 and about 1/20 of this number occurs in men. Anorexia affects all aspects of an affected person's life including emotional health, physical health, and relationships with others (Shekter-Wolfson et al 5-6). A study completed in 1996 showed that anorexics also tend to possess traits that are obsessive in nature and carry heavy emotional

disorder by age 20; 43% report onset between ages of 16 and 20. Anorexia is the third