Social Media's Influence On Eating Disorders

In severe cases, brain damage can be noticed in anorexic people, with excessive weight loss the brain shrinks and loses mass. This can lead to slow thinking, confusion, slow memory and poor judgement. Another symptom in anorexia is, thinning of bones also known as osteopenia or osteoporosis. This is one of the most serious symptoms of anorexia because it can lead to bone fractures, loss of stature, chronic pain and disabilities. Other symptoms of anorexia include: dry yellowish skin, dry nails and hair, thinning of hair, severe constipation, drop of internal body temperature, lethargy and damage to the structure and function of the heart (“Eating Disorders”)

Characteristics of anorexia are dieting despite being thin and having an obsession with caloric intake as well as fat grams. An anorexic person often pretends to eat or will lie about their intake of meals because of their belief of being overweight. With all of the food restrictions many problems occur in the body and outside of the body. Some of these risks include the drastic change in brain chemistry that makes it difficult for them to think correctly, decrease in memory, fainting, or they may become sad, moody, irritable, or depressed. Other changes would include, hair may become thin and brittle, skin is dry and easily bruises, they get cold easily, and nails often get brittle. However those are not the most dangerous risks. If one is anorexic,

Anorexia is a terrible disorder that ravages the body as it seems to bring comfort to the mind. A female anorexic tends to lose mostly body fat. Men primarily lose muscle tissue and tone. As this is destroyed it takes its toll on the body. Bone loss, heart muscle loss, and anemia are just a few of the ways this disorder affects the body. The two main causes of death with Anorexia are cardiac arrest and terminal dehydration. These are typically brought on by complications of starving the body of required nutrients for long periods of time.

Most people with anorexia have a distorted image of their body. An anorexic will look into the mirror and see fat, even if they are sickly thin. Most commonly, anorexia begins in the teen years. This may be related to the common self-image problems that many teens suffer from. Anorexia tends to be more common in females than in males, and early intervention seems to be the key when dealing with this disorder. When left untreated, anorexia can lead to a whole slew of physical problems. Health problems related to anorexia include osteoporosis, kidney damage or failure, heart problems, and even death. Anorexia also affects the brain, as a person starves themself their metabolism changes. This change in the body causes a person not to think clearly or make good decisions. As anorexia progresses, a person will begin to have irrational behavior. For example, a person suffering from anorexia will often make rules about the amount of food they are “allowed” to consume. Others may start to purge themselves after eating even the tiniest bit of food, which is known as Bulimia. Anorexia can also bring on another psychological disorder; Depression. Depression is a mental illness that causes a person to feel sad and hopeless most of the time. People that suffer from depression will lose interest in things that they previously enjoyed, speak slower than normal, have trouble concentrating and remembering things, and be preoccupied by death

As of the year 2013, an estimated 805 million people worldwide suffer from Hunger. This number represents a group of people who suffer from food insecurity. This means they have inadequate access to food and don’t know when their next meal will be. This being said, an estimated 70 million people worldwide suffer from some sort of eating disorders as of 2015 with 30 million being made up of Americans. Eating Disorders can be defined as any eating habit that negatively affects ones overall health. Media has had a large impact on how both males and females see their bodies.

Donna, who suffered from bulimia for 13 years, refuses to have social media in order to protect herself. She was in an online discussion forum in high school where people compared their weights, binged together and helped one another avoid eating which affected her so greatly that it drives her to stay away from social media because she doesn’t want to compare anymore. There is social media pages very much like that discussion forum that Donna was in that motivate those who suffer to get worse by saying things like “Pretty girls don’t eat” and “skip dinner, be thinner” on the pictures they post. There always has been “Pro-ana” (pro anorexia) and “Pro-mia” (pro bulimia) websites but social media has given those type of sites a global platform where they can share their ideas and photographs to support the self-destructive behaviors that they treat as a lifestyle choice, instead of as the serious mental illness it is. The constant stream of images of we are exposed to cause eating disorders to thrive. One study shows that the more time teenage girls spend on facebook heighten the likeliness of them developing an eating disorder. These websites and social media pages may cause triggers but they are never the sole cause of someone’s eating disorder. There is also very many testimonies of recovery on social media that could have a positive effect on someone’s eating disorder as well, but it's

Teenagers are constantly bombarded with media on how to dress, how to act, and who to hang with to be considered “cool.” As stated by the Common Sense Census, the amount of time teenagers spend on some form of media is on average nine hours. More than half of the hours they are awake is spent consuming media, making them vulnerable to the ideas of the media. In recent years, the number of teenage girls that suffer from eating disorders has increased drastically due to this increase of media exposure, but it isn’t so much the amount of exposure as the kind of exposure. The question of how much influence media has on eating disorders

Eating disorders have become a major problem throughout the world, specifically in the United States. The key factor that has an influence on eating disorders is the media. Including people of all ages and genders, up to twenty-four million people suffer from an eating disorder in the United States (ANAD np). This is a huge problem in the world today but what makes it so much worse is the fact that it can be prevented and it is in our control to change it. Young adults look to these celebrities, which are often their role models, and try to look just like them. What they fail to remember is the fact that celebrities have a lot of money, money that can afford nutritionists and personal trainers. They also fail to remember the extensive measures the celebrities may have to go through to look the way they do. An example of extensive measures can be considered plastic surgery. Ultimately, this creates a false goal that is almost unattainable for the “average” or “regular” person. Overall, the media has overtaken a huge impact on what the “ideal” body image has become today. Eating disorders are still on the rise and it is proven that an eating disorder such as anorexia affects up to 5 percent of women from ages 15-30 years old ("Media, Body Image, and Eating Disorders | National Eating Disorders Association np"). This may not seem that significant but it is also not considering other eating disorders such as bulimia. All in all, eating disorders

Media has greatly evolved since starting, but has bad evolved with it? Print media, digital media, and now social media surround everybody today. Media surround us when we go to the store and see magazines, when we sit and home and watch TV, and especially when we go online. Over time, media has created its own idea of beauty. Medias influence on body image can’t be overlooked. Media and eating disorders have a cause and effect relationship. In Helens article, “Eating Disorders: A growing problem on college campuses”, she expresses that, “In today’s media-saturated world, young women are bombarded with one message: be thin” (Helen, 2014, Paragraph 9). Today media shows that to beautiful you have to be an unhealthy weight. If media doesn’t change its view of beautiful, then the rate of eating disorders triggered by media will go up. We need to figure out a way to help now.

2. Depression, anxiety disorders, personality disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and drug abuse are some common psychological complications associated with anorexia.

Social media is one way to see people views on what the "ideal" body image and it also one of the quickest ways to kills someone's self esteem. People post their pictures on the internet and anyone can view it and is free to make comments as they please. Social media sites like Instagram have made "Likes" and "Comment" a superficial thing in people's minds. If a male or female see that they are not getting the same attention as another on social media because of their body image this could result in a eating disorder depending on the individual. In the article from the daily beast by Emily Shire, she mentions that, "Facebook, Instagram, and other social media technology may be inadvertently worsening the struggles of those suffering from eating

The topic that I want to research for my final researched argument essay is the media influence on eating disorders focusing on children and adolescents. I want to explore, further expand, and support my argument stating that media does have an influence on eating disorders especially in children and adolescents using articles and reports to provide evidence and aid my thesis.

This is an article about a woman who despises the fact that looks are so important and makes many valid points about the topic. It begins with the sentence, “I have to be thin, well-developed, have clear skin and shave my legs. Basically, I can not be myself.” This is the sad truth and I am glad this line was part of the article because it really makes you think. The article then proves that looking attractive has only been considered major more recently, now that social media is such a huge deal. Girls get praised for their looks but not for their successes and with models being thrown in their face everyday on their phones, problem being to stir. There has been a major rise in eating disorders, depression and low self esteem since social

We must also consider the effects of anorexia. People with anorexia experience hair loss and fingernail breakage. Women who suffer will begin to have period loss. Those who continue to be anorexic without getting help can become anemic and even begin to develop very brittle bones. Anorexia is a serious medical illness, and with severe malnutrition anorexia can also cause death.

In-patients with anorexia, starvation can damage vital organs such as the heart and brain. To protect itself, the body shifts into " slow gear ": monthly menstrual periods stop, breathing, pulse and, blood pressure rates drop, and thyroid function slows. Nails and hair become brittle, the skin dries, yellows, and becomes covered with soft hair called lanugo. Excessive thirst and frequent urination may occur. Dehydration contributes to constipation, and reduced body fat leads to lowered body temperature and inability to with stand cold. Mild anemia, swollen joints, reduced muscles mass, and light headedness also commonly occur in anorexia. If the disorder becomes severe, patients may lose calcium from their bones, making them brittle and prone to breakage. Scientists from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) have also found that patients suffer from other psychiatric illnesses. They may suffer from anxiety, personality or substance abuse disorders, and many are at a risk for suicide. Obsessive compulsive disorder, an illness characterized by repetitive thoughts and behaviors, can also accompany anorexia.