It has become obvious now that the media advertises and promotes a very unhealthy trend of extreme dieting and other bad eating habits for women. Most media outlets put images of emancipated skinny women on their covers. By doing this, they influence the subconscious mind of the masses. And women continue to spend their money trying to achieve this unattainable look that they constantly see in media hype.
To try to solve this problem, let’s answer the following questions.
- What is body image?
- What kind of trends in the media industry are we noticing right now?
- How do the media influence our perception of body image?
- What could be the reasons behind this?
- What are the consequences of this kind of trend?
- What are some real suggestions on how to improve your body image?
Your body image is how you perceive, think and feel about your body. This may not have anything to do with his actual appearance. For example, it is common in Western nations for women to believe that they are bigger and fatter than they really are. Only one in five women is satisfied with her body weight. Nearly half of all normal-weight women overestimate their size and shape. A distorted body image can lead to self-destructive behavior, such as dieting or eating disorders. About nine in 10 young Australian women have dieted at least once in their lives.
Therefore, the basic trend in the media industry right now is to promote thin, even skinny, unnatural-looking female bodies as beautiful.
Women of all ages, but especially young women, look at magazines, television, movies, and other media products filled with images depicting slim female bodies. And these are perceived by the subconscious mind of young women as a role model and who they aspire to be. Achieving this skinny look doesn’t come naturally; it inevitably leads to the practice of some type of diet, excessive exercise or abnormal eating behaviors.
Twenty years ago, the average model weighed 8 percent less than the average woman, but today’s models weigh 23 percent less. Advertisers believe that skinny models sell products. When Australia’s New Woman magazine recently featured a photo of a burly model on its cover, it received a slew of letters from appreciative readers praising the move. But his advertisers complained, and the magazine went back to featuring skinny models.
What could be the reason behind all this? Why has this fashion trend occurred now?
Why are beauty standards imposed on women, most of whom are naturally larger than any of the models?
The reasons for this, according to some analysts, is economic. By presenting an ideal appearance that is difficult to achieve and maintain, the cosmetic and dietary product industries are assured of growth and profits. The diet industry alone is estimated to be worth $100 billion (US) a year. This is a lot of money and certainly worth continuing to promote emancipated women as the norm.
And the consequences of this trend are enormous. For one thing, women who feel insecure about their bodies are more likely to buy beauty products, new clothes, and diet pills or other dietary supplies.
On the other hand, research indicates that exposure to images of thin, young, airbrushed female bodies is linked to depression, loss of self-esteem, and the development of unhealthy eating habits in women and girls.
The level of eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia is increasing rapidly every year. It is estimated that about 5 percent of women and 1 percent of men have an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia or binge eating at some point in their lives.
And about 15 percent of all young women have significantly distorted eating attitudes and behaviors that may lead to developing anorexia or bulimia in the near future.
So what would be some real tips on how to improve your body image without resorting to unhealthy eating habits?
The first is to change your goal from losing weight to simply improving your health. Second, it is to focus more on inner beauty such as improving his self-esteem, self-confidence and inner strengths of his character.
Educate yourself by reading body image issues and self-improvement books. And take a break from women’s magazines and mass media advertising for a while if you feel you’re prone to these kinds of false perceptions.
In short, the media has a significant impact on women’s body image and can negatively affect women’s physical and mental health. And the only way to stop these negative media effects is to teach women not to judge themselves by beauty industry standards and learn not to compare themselves to cover girls. And it is also important to promote a healthy lifestyle with an emphasis on inner beauty such as improving self-esteem and self-confidence. Not in being a stick as a model.
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