The Media and Its Effect on Body Image Part II
The Media and Its Effect on Body Image Part II
Common Eating Disorders
The two most common eating disorders in the United States are anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. Anorexia is the most deadly psychiatric disorder, and bulimia is less deadly, but much more common (“Update: Eating Disorders” 1). Anorexia is defined as the obsessive preoccupation with thinness. In order to be considered anorexic, the person must be 15% below the normal weight for their age and height. Those with anorexia will reduce their food intake and even skip meals entirely. Their methods of weight loss include counting calories, vigorously excercise, and even using laxatives in dangerous amounts. Serious health problems occur as a result, including low heart rate, low blood pressure, which can lead to heart failure, swollen joints, loss of muscle mass, calcium depletion, which leads to brittle and breakable bones, and a lack of food can even lead to brain damage (“Update: Eating Disorders” 3). Women with anorexia tend to skip their menstrual cycles, referred to as “amennorrhea”. They also tend to experience dizziness and lethargy.
Bulimia, on the other hand, is the act of eating a large quantity of food and forcing themselves to vomit afterwards. This is referred to as the “binge/purge cycle”. Those with bulima tend to fast, engage in excessive exercise, and take laxatives, similar to anorexia. They practice these methods to keep themselves from gaining weight, but appear to still be eating in a somewhat healthy way. In order to be diagnosed with bulimia, the person must engage in a binge/purge cycle at least twice a week for three months. Bulimia causes health complications that affect the entire body. This includes throat irritation, swollen glands, and tooth decay because of the frequent vomiting, a damaged stomach, depletion of nutrients which can cause heart failure, an abuse of laxatives leads to damaged intestines, and the abuse of diuretics (to increase urination) can damage kidneys (“Update: Eating Disorders” 5).
Anorexia affects almost 1% of women in the United States, while bulimia is closer to 1.5%. However, this number is most likely higher, because some have a difficult time admitting their problem. Out of all psychiatric sicknesses, eating disorders have the highest mortality rate. Even children around the ages of eight and nine have been diagnosed with anorexia or bulimia, and at a more frequent rate than ever. The culprit of the rise of these illnesses is the media and the fashion industry, those of which only put forth the skinniest and most beautiful models, according to American’s twisted standard of beauty.
Fashion Models
Fashion models are portrayed to be seen as “ordinary”, however, only 2% of women are naturally as thin as the average model. The lifestyles of both a model and a typical American woman are barely even comparable. A model works full-time with trainers and make-up artists to uphold their perfect appearance. At photo-shoots, various clips and weights are placed on clothing to help “mold” the clothes to their bodies flawlessly. Even after the pictures are taken, digital alterations go even further to make the images more unrealistic. With these methods, the standard of beauty is very untrue to real life, for both average women and models themselves.
The constant reminder that they must be absolutely perfect at all times can weigh heavy on a model’s mental and physical health. Eating disorders have taken the lives of many famous models from all over the world. 28-year old French model Isabelle Caro’s life was claimed by anorexia in 2010, thre years after she tried to expose the horrors of her illness in an advertisement titled “No Anorexia”, in which she posed naked to display her grotesquely thin body. In 2006, 22-year old Uruguayan model, Luisel Ramos died of heart failure beackstage after a show. For months, her diet consisted of nothing but lettuce and diet Coke. Also in 2006, 21-year old Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston died from an infection her body was too weak to fight off, due to her long battle with both anorexia and bulimia (Rodenbough 1).
If you missed Part 1 you can find it here: The Media and Its Effect on Body Image Part I
Go on to Part III: The Media and Its Effect on Body Image Part III
Go on to Part IV: The Media and Its Effect on Body Image Part IV
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