Anorexia: Is the media to blame?

[Banana_Dragon]

Nearly everyone (if not everyone) living in Western society is influenced by the media in this day and age. Especially by the ideals it presents us.
You must be rich, big cars are cool, big houses are cool, you must have a succesful career, if you take these pills or eat these things you'll live healthier and longer and have more time to make an impact on the world, you must be famous... and of course: "you must be beautiful."

In western society there is plenty of food for everyone. We can eat whatever we want and most of the times in the quantities we want and even choose which brand we prefer.
However, some people still (seemingly consciously) choose to starve themselves to near-death just to be 'beautiful.'

Media and catwalk models 'teach' us that 'skinnier is more beautiful.'
Because these models get all the attention, it's not strange for people to assume that by being skinny, people will find them beautiful and give them attention.

The impact of this seems to be going so deep that if you actually talk to an anorexic person (as I did) and tell them they don't look bad at all they will outright say you are lying or even if they don't outright say it, they won't believe you.
They can't accept the fact that they are attractive and think everyone must be lying because the media has it's spotlights on people much skinnier than them. It doesn't make sense for them that people find them even slightly pretty.
To themselves they are ugly and they are ashamed of it and will do anything they can to be the skinniest person ever. Being beautiful makes more sense to them than being healthy.

Now... the source of this problem is highly likely to be a combination of different factors, but I believe the media is one of the, if not the main reason that this problem exists today.

My arguments summed up:
- Media wants to make us strive for ideals and plays on the 'fear of rejection' of people to makes us want these ideals.
- Media gives a lot of attention to models, which tend to be very skinny. Thus making skinny an ideal.
- Media doesn't nearly pay as much attention to health issues as it does to beauty and sex-appeal issues, thus making health less important.

So, my question: who of you thinks the media is the main reason that anorexia exists today (or definately has an influence on it's existence today) and why? Also, what are other factors in the cause of this problem and what might potential solutions be (or what should/can the media do to help ban this problem in the future?)?

Of course, parents who let their kids be raised by TV or deprive their children of attention also hold some responsibility in the cause of this problem.
It's perfectly normal I think that when a child doesn't feel appreciated and feels that he/she doesn't get the attention he/she should be getting, that other methods of obtaining this attention will be sought after. Beauty being one of the ways to achieve this goal.

The media holds a lot of power over the minds of people, and I think that if they 'want', they could easily make 'average people' seem beautiful enough and focus more on health issues and everyday people such as the girl next door or the guy living across the street.
I'm however pretty certain they won't do this because then they wouldn't make nearly as much profit as they do now.

Thoughts?

 

[Sandy]

I've always thought this to be a concern in your HS years, the whole popularity thing, but after HS your reputation fades off and you're faced into the real world.

This is how I see it, get a good job, a good house, a good wife and kids. After that, you seriously have no reason to worry about your appearance, though a lot of people are stubborn and prefer to suit to drastic measures to look good, or spend the majority of the time looking at themselves in the mirror and wondering just how the hell can they look so **** hideous.

Besides, how do you truly know what's beautiful and what's not? Is there even such a thing? not to me, I believe it's what someone means to you. Someone you love can be the most beautiful thing you've ever laid eyes on, not because of what the world consideres what's beautiful, but because of what that person truly means to you.

 

[Banana_Dragon]

Hmmm, I'm not sure if you're using 'you' at me personally or just as a generalization

Beauty is indeed subject to opinion. Aesthetics are in the end a subjective thing.
However, beauty is also an 'idea'. And ideas you have, thoughts you think, are easily surrounded by the environment and the people in it.

There have been many instances at times in history and locations on this earth where people consider 'fat' to be beautiful. While most in nowadays western society would be grossed out by it.
We have our own idea of what beatiful is yes and it's just an opinion, but it's an easily influenced one.

The media is obviously a big influence on people in the modern world and also on our idea of beauty.

Indeed, what you say is logical. Good job, good house, good family and then you have what is realistic to wish for and no need to worry about appearance. Yet some people still do, since while they may accept that another loves them for their personality, they sometimes just outright refuse to believe anyone else can find them attractive.
Because they themselves are not what they think is beautiful and are so influenced by media that they only see one way of being 'aesthetically perfect.'

While indeed I agree that a person's inside can make them that much more beautiful, some people are so brainwashed by the media and their environment that they do not see this.

And how do you tell someone they're beautiful when they outright refuse to believe it? It's like saying "1 + 1 = 2" and the other person saying "No, it isn't."

 

[Me14k]

Anorexia is sad, but looking at the entire american spectrum in regards towards dietary disorders..our real problem is over eating and in 30-40 years when our youth hits their midlife crisis we are going to have a lot of problems. The average age for heart attacks is in this time period along with heart disease..Diabetes also.

I don't think the answer is to attempt to reform the media whereas they do what that one underwear company is doing with the 'normal size' models.. Obesity is socially contagious..overweight is slowly becoming acceptable. We need to advertise being fit, and that means withstanding a healthy weight.

 

[DoH]

Coming from my own experience with bulimia, having an eating disorder is an incredibly terrifying thing. It's like your body is betraying you at ever step and you have to take charge and "fix" your mistakes by purging; but in the end you're just buying into the vicious cycle.

I think the development of an eating disorder stems from a far greater than just the media's influence; I think its far more pervasive and extends to a societal one as well. In my culture, I know there is a big difference between hetero skinny and homo skinny. I think there's just as much pressure (if not more) for gay men to be thin as there is for straight girls. We are taught that pretty people are the ones who get the guy, and that you have to be attractive for people to love you; essentially we are taught to hate ourselves and our bodies, and develop unrealistic expectations of what defines healthy. I think most peoples bodies are so uniquely shaped - for example, I have giant man shoulders for my height, and a giant rib cage for my frame, so standard expectations of male attractiveness don't easily translate to my specific stats.

 

[James Sparrow]

This is really all about normative influence, and according to modern social psychology, the answer to your question is (at least to some degree) yes. Because people are seeing the vast number of skinny (possibly underweight actresses, models, and celebrities they are subconsciously forming a mental schema that in essence makes them feel that's how a person is supposed to be. If said person is feeling that they do not fit that social norm, they tend to develop an internal struggle called cognitive dissonance. They feel as if they are not meeting the expectations of society, and seek some way to do so. In some cases, the result is developing anorexia, bulimia, or other eating disorders.

A lot of other factors contribute to the development of eating disorders as well, but I believe the topic being discussed is one of the most important and most prevalent.

 

[Colenstien]

The media definently influences what is considered to be cool. The sight of skinny celebs will affect anyone. Take Nicole Richie, you could probably put your around her and end up with a game of pick up sticks. The sight of someone famous being so thin, and being complimented for it, makes people want to be that thin to emulate them. Culture has all the influence. In some places in Africa, the size of a woman shows standing, and therefore beauty.

So yes, culture causes most of these things.

 

[Sandy]

Beauty is overrated today, something the media likes to shape in it's own image. I only find natural beauty in females, not the kind who put on a pound of make-up everyday and make themselves throw up in the evening. I think the ones who are comfortable with themselves and make it work are not only beautiful, but sometimes sexy as well.

 

[Gamer4Fire]

I blame parents for allowing the media to raise their children instead of taking responsibility for their offspring.

 

[Kips]

I feel that the media is partially to blame for Anorexia. Why? If one looks around the world at the media that surrounds them, the magazines and television shows, you will only see, outside of a few stereotypes, the skinny and beautiful people. This introduces the notion that it is not only acceptable, but lauded to become like this. There is nothing further from the truth.

In the past it was actually fashionable to be pleasantly plump, as it meant that one had enough money to eat and live comfortably. Being skinny was actually for poor people, as they couldn't obtain the necessary food or amenities. It was only until recently that being skinny meant that you had enough money to go on silly diets and that it became aesthetically 'in'. The only thing you see in magazines are these people, skinny and rich people that encourage you to practically starve yourself in the name of vanity.

On top of this, it is more then likely more healthy to have meat on your bones. This is because fat insulates the body from heat and cold and serves as a reserve for energy. On the flip-side, being skinny will not protect the body as well and one does not have the reserves that a larger person would. The media portrays largeness as a negative trait, notably obesity, which albeit is bad, and says nothing of the positive traits of a controllable larger weight. In this way they are to be blamed as well for not only making it look unfashionable, but unhealthy.

So yes, media today does give as much 'thinspiration' as anything else. It not only supports, indirectly, the anorexic culture, but also refuses to see the healthy benefits of being large.

 

[Gamer4Fire]

In the past it was actually fashionable to be pleasantly plump, as it meant that one had enough money to eat and live comfortably. Being skinny was actually for poor people, as they couldn't obtain the necessary food or amenities. It was only until recently that being skinny meant that you had enough money to go on silly diets and that it became aesthetically 'in'. The only thing you see in magazines are these people, skinny and rich people that encourage you to practically starve yourself in the name of vanity.

An interesting point is that the media's presentation of beauty has nothing to do with rich people and diets. It is all about laziness. All of those clothes designers who make the latest fashions have an easier time to make and design clothes for stick people as opposed to normal people. Normal people are curvy and it makes it harder to design clothes for them. Because of that little fact, clothes designers preferred skinny models to display there clothes on. And when everyone saw the latest fashions on these stick people everywhere, they started to associate that as being normal and good. When in actuality it is abnormal and was only used because people didn't want to have to work hard.

 

[AxelSlam]

I think that the media does contribute on what people think is cool or "in" these days. But I also believe that it's an age factor too. I think that the younger audience would be affected by this more because they are still learning and if they see something like that everyday, they would think it would be a cool thing to do, so they try to be like their role models.

A perfect example (well, it's not the greatest example, but I think it's pretty good) of this topic is the episode of South Park when Paris Hilton opened up her store in their mall (Stupid Spoiled ***** was the name). Throughout the episode the girls of South Park started to act like her and dress like her, etc. Even though that was only a show, it still was pretty good example of what the media can do to people.

Note - This is my first post in the DH.