Do Magazines Influence Eating Disorders - Do Magazines Influence Eating Disorders?

The attention-grabbing pictures of various high-flying supermodels and actors on different magazine covers and advertisements go a long way in influencing our choices. These celebrities are symbols of power, happiness and wealth for the ordinary folks. We tend to forget that most of these photos are digitally enhanced. Such fake images set unrealistic aspirations among us about how we should look. It gets kind of drilled in our minds that the use of certain products and following certain habits would help us to achieve perfection. When we don't get the desired results, we tend to abandon our healthy and normal ways of living.

The media — through billboards, magazine covers and articles or television advertisements — promote a fake image of proper living. Reed-thin models rule the roost everywhere as modelling agencies look for waif-like bodies. Some models opt for plastic surgery, some get ‘taped-up' to make their bodies appear photogenic. And often, they suffer from some kind of eating disorders Men and women, especially adolescents, fall for the artificiality of these celebrities. They tend to follow the various diet plans of these models, advertised on television and published in fashion magazines, without bothering to check whether such a plan would suit them or not. As a result, eating disorder sets in.

The chronic obsession with weight at every moment of our life emphasize the importance of it. We are rarely proud of our bodies irrespective of the shape and size. And rarely do the media help us in forgetting such weighty issues. Apart from models, various fashion magazines and fitness shows on television highlight thin characters. They play a huge role in influencing the eating patterns of young people. According to a study, men and women who regularly read or see such magazines or shows display signs of disordered eating.

There is no doubt the media provides various contents on body related issues to young people between the ages of 11 -15 years. This exposure coincides with a period in their lives where body image is fragile due to the physical changes of puberty. The tendency for social comparison is also at its peak in this stage.

The media can influence the eating habits in many ways. It creates unnatural drives for food by showing sexiness, nostalgia and fun; it can force us to believe in wrong eating habits through pizza and burger advertisements; it can create a sense of anxiety and deprivation if we cannot have something that everybody else is eating; it shows us perfect figures through eating certain foods which may not be actually healthy; and it gives us the feeling that life would be fun if only we were slim.

However, anorexia, bulimia and compulsive overeating are not just about food and weight. Low self-esteem, inability to cope with stress and other related issues lead to such eating disorder. Research has proved that it is those with low self-esteem who are most influenced by media. Thus media is not the only culprit behind eating disorders. But that doesn't free it of liability. Media is omnipresent and challenging it can halt the constant pressure on people to be perfect.

• Cassandra Bagley
• 07/05/2009, 2:59 AM
• 0 Comments