The Media's Influences on Eating Disorders

The media's influence on eating disorders is a serious situation that is permeating our culture much more so than in the past.

While poor body image is one of the precursors to the disorders,it is painfully obvious that the media presents us with unrealistic beauty when it comes to the people in our world, and that is why many suffer from eating disorders, they have the false hope of looking that way one day.

In this article, we'll examine the role of the media's influence on eating disorders when it comes to disorders such as anorexia and bulimia.

One of the main factors in the development of our children in recent times is the place that the television has taken in the majority of households, that of babysitter, a way to spend time, or even a place to provide role models.

While some may resort to the television as a means of entertainment from time to time, we all know about families in which the television is god, with the media's influence on eating disorders in that it is playing the role of parent to our growing children.

Our children are very susceptible to peer pressure, both from their friends and the media, and the roots of eating disorders often occur during adolescence. And it's no secret that the media is actively participating when it comes to portraying extremely thin and unhealthy models in ads and on television.

As it turns out, the average model female has a weight that is approximately twenty to twenty five percent less than her ideal body weight.

When that is added to the fact that plastic surgery is often undertaken by these models, and the photos that are taken of them are often airbrushed to eliminate flaws, a standard of beauty that is presented to us is unattainable to the vast majority of persons.

We are continuously exposed to these messages of unrealistic beauty, as the average person is expected to see between four and six hundred advertisements per day.

Out of these advertisements, more than one in ten are based on a beauty product that will feature a model.

School can prove to be a significant source of pressure when it comes to self image, and when coupled with the messages sent to us by the media, it's no wonder that eating disorders pervade our culture.

Our children have the unique problem of being both impressionable and cruel, and when someone is teased about the appearance of their body, the likelihood of an eating disorder may become more and more evident.

While you may think that eating disorders aren't altogether present in our culture on a large scale, you may be shocked to hear the findings of studies. One showed that a full nearly fifteen percent of college-aged girls has a problem with bulimia, and more than one percent are considered anorexic.

These problems clearly aren't going away, and in order to be treated, psycho-therapy is often necessary. The problems are rooted deeply on the psychological level, and counseling and therapy are often the only solutions when one is afflicted with an eating disorder.

Nearly ten percent people suffering from eating disorders will eventually die due to the damage to their body as a result of their eating disorder. To that end, eating disorders are a serious health problem affecting us today and they need to be seriously examined.

The media should be more responsible when it comes to the images that are placed upon our impressionable children.