Body Image - the Media and Children

A hundred years ago, being corpulent was a sign of wealth and beauty. It was a sign of a content and happy lifestyle for only the rich could afford quality and quantity in food. Unfortunately times have changed and a voluptuous body is no longer considered beautiful. In a hundred years how did America’s prerogative change? For the ideal body type today is tall and ultra slim. There are images of models and thin actresses circulating in society promoting airbrushed, bogus, and unattainable, so called beauty. In the past twenty-five years the majority of people on T.V and in magazines has gotten disgustingly and dangerously thin. The media is demonstrating to the public how hot they are not.

The reason that these thin, young twits are being shoved in reality’s more mature and voluptuous faces is purely economical. The media flashes pictures of stereotypical beauty that is impossible to attain, to ensure the flourish of the cosmetic industries . Make-up, diet pills, and exercise equipment are all advertised through the media and are aiming a greater the profit. Which makes slim and under nourished performers another form of advertisement. The affect of the media reaches every member of the household, for children as young as six have already put themselves on food restrictive diets. Kids are even more receptive of advertisement than adults which leads them to a confused state for cosmetics are not the only products advertised on T.V. Children do not know if it is okay to be skinny, fat, muscular, curvy, boney, tall, short, or anything. A typical child views over 40,000 television ads per year. Those commercials range from cosmetic products to fast food and low nutrient snacks. Between a child’s favorite television shows, he or she sees images of candy, soda, snacks, and fast food causing their families to purchase these items. When a child eats candy and snack in excess he or she will gain body fat, but then they can’t understand why they don’t look like the skinny stars on T.V. So not only is the media causing obesity, but also depression. The rate of obesity, suicide, and eating disorders in America is increasing. Some kids are even unaware he or she is committing suicide, for anorexics and bulimics kill themselves unintentionally. Twenty percent of those diagnosed with an eating disorder die and it is also the third largest health problem for girls. Girls spend the majority of the lives trying to superficially beautiful, and contract the diseases of anorexia and bulimia. The consequence of these diseases is both mental and physical pain. Physically one experiences abdominal and constipation pain, insomnia, facial hair, loss of menstrual cycle, lack of energy, dizziness, fainting, headaches, yellowish skin, and cold sensations. While in the midst of the

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