In today society all women can think about is their body image. They want to tall and slim. Slim meaning size 0 or 2 and weighting 100 pounds. The media has played a huge part in this. With all the shows on t.v. now and magazines you would think our whole society was trying to be something they aren't. The sad thing is that its not just women that want to look like this..it is young girls starting around the age of 8! Which leads to serious health issues. The American research group Anorexia Nervosa & Related Eating Disorders, Inc. says that one out of every four college-aged women uses unhealthy methods of weight control; including fasting, skipping meals, excessive exercise, laxative abuse, and self-induced vomiting. This is not suppose to be happening!!
I found this very interesting: Researchers report that women’s magazines have ten and one-half times more ads and articles promoting weight loss than men’s magazines do, and over three-quarters of the covers of women’s magazines include at least one message about how to change a woman’s bodily appearance—by diet, exercise or cosmetic surgery.
Another issue is the representation of ethnically diverse women in the media. A 2008 study conducted by Juanita Covert and Travis Dixon titled "A Changing View: Representation and Effects of the Portrayal of Women of Color in Mainstream Women's Magazines” found that although there was an increase in the representation of women of color, overall white women were overrepresented in mainstream women’s magazines from 1999 to 2004.
Women and men should both be happy with their bodies. The media has killed so many dreams for people due to body image issues. People just need to stay strong and be true to ones self.
I feel like the media isn't just responsible for killing dreams but lives as well. The media has a way to really make people feel so bad they think they will never be happy.
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