Lead To Eating Disorders In Teenage Girls example essay topic

She stands in front of the mirror examining her slim ninety pound body. In our eyes, she appears to be malnourished and frail, but in her eyes she sees herself as fat and revolting. She will continue to lose weight in order to fulfill her goal of looking thinner and sexier than the girls in Seventeen or on MTV. Nothing we say will change her mind.

Her ears block the sound when we tell her she looks beautiful. The only voice she hears is her eating disorder telling her how overweight she is. The next time we see her she is as thin as paper and as pale as a ghost. That day we pay our final respects to a girl whose ears were blocked by an eating disorder and whose eyes were changed by the impact of the media. The television and magazine advertising media should not portray females as Barbie dolls because these advertisements often lead to eating disorders in teenage girls.

Teenagers live in a world where the media provides role models who teach them to value beauty and thinness over strength and character. If the television and magazine advertising media would portray a greater variety of body shapes and sizes, the standard of beauty would not be impossible for young women to achieve. The average person sees 400-600 advertisements per day (Dittrich) which are saturated with Barbie look-a-likes. Majority of these advertisements are delivered by television and magazines. Studies found that 56% of television commercials and 50% of teenage girl magazine advertisements use beauty to sell their product (Body Image). They lather their product with small waisted, big breasted, perfect skinned models.

Statistics reveal that the average young adolescent watches 5 hours of television per day (Morris). In addition, 50% of young women (ages 11-15) read fashion and beauty magazines (Jade). By the end of the day the media has impacted them on what is popular, what is acceptable and above all, what is attractive. Why do magazines who promote self acceptance, healthy eating habits and girl power display Barbie look-a-like models? According to Lesley Seymour, former editor-in-chief of the popular teen magazine YM, thin begins with the fashion designers. "The big designers create all the big fashions... and what they really want are walking hangers.

They want somebody who's almost so invisible that the clothes stand out more" (Self Image). If this is the case than why do the editors promote these designers and models? Seymour explains that there are two separate ways that magazines are put together: the editors who make the creative aspect of the magazine and the publisher who sells the ads. Models have not always been so thin. According to Katie Ford of Ford Models, body types have changed drastically over the years. Twenty years ago the average model weighed only 8% less than the average woman; today, they weigh 23% less (Body Image).

Ford explained that at the time of photo shoots only sample sizes of the clothing are made. The designers design for thin models making the samples tiny enough to fit your average two-three size model, unlike the average women who wears a size ten or larger. "Should designers choose to change, then there will be models to fit that need also" says Ford (Self Image). Do we blame the fashion designers or the publishers for portraying such visuals?

The publisher is the one who ultimately makes the decision to include or exclude these types of advertisements in the magazine. The Hearst Magazine Corporation is the leader in the teen magazine market distributing 14.45 million Seventeen magazines each month and 3.68 million Cosmo GIRL! magazines ten times a year (Teen Titles). Imagine the impact young women would have if every page they flipped and every article they read in Hearst Magazines was free of thin messages. Imagine every model on every page wore a size ten, had crooked teeth, wore only a B cup bra size and even had an oily face. Teenage girls believe that they can look like these super thin models so they go to extreme measures to be "attractive".

In most cases, what is attractive is unhealthy for these young women to pursue. This is when eating disorders like anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa arise. Statistics show that ninety percent of individuals with eating disorders are teenage girls (Dittrich). Majority of these girls do not recognize their habits as a disorder and believe that they do not need help.

Denial of such conditions can be extreme, leading from depression to death (Eating Disorders). It is more common for those with anorexia nervosa to deny their condition than those with bulimia nervosa. Anorexia nervosa affects one in every 2400 adolescents and 90-95 percent are females (Anorexia). Those with anorexia nervosa experience an intense drive for thinness, fear of gaining weight and a disturbance in their body image. Studies show that one out of every three individuals with anorexia nervosa develops bulimia nervosa (Anorexia).

Individuals with bulimia nervosa lead a complex lifestyle to accommodate their eating behaviors, usually associated with overeating. There are two types of bulimia anorexia: purging and non-purging. Bulimics who purge engage in self induced vomiting or laxative abuse while non-purging bulimics resort to excessive dieting or fasting (Bulimia). The physical dangers of eating disorders are endless.

"The outward appearance of a person suffering from an eating disorder does not dictate the amount of physical danger they are in, nor does it determine the severity of emotional conflict they are enduring" (Eating Disorders). There isn't one part of the body that isn't affected by an eating disorder. It reaches your mouth causing tooth decay and gum disease. It reaches your blood causing diabetes, low blood sugar and high blood pressure which can lead to vision impairment, kidney failure and brain damage. It reaches your mind causing depression and mood swings. It reaches your womanhood causing menstrual loss, infertility, high risk pregnancy, birth defects, miscarriages and infertility.

It can also reach your grave causing death if the eating disorder is not treated properly. "Anorexia". 2002. Eating Disorder Center.

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28. Jul. 2003... "Bulimia". Eating Disorder Center. 30. Jul. 2003. web.

Dittrich, Liz. "Facts on Body Image". 2003. About Face. 28.

Jul. 2003. web. -- -. "Facts on the Media". 2003. About Face.

28. Jul. 2003 web. "Eating Disorders". Eating Disorder Center. 30. Jul. 2003. web.

Morris, Anne. Debra Katzman. "The Impact of the Media on Eating Disorders". 2003. Paediatric Society. 30.

Jul. 2003. "Self Image: The Fantasy, The Reality". In The Mix. Public Broadcasting Station.

K LCS, Los Angeles. 30. Jul. 2003. "Teen Titles". Hearst Magazine. 1.

Aug. 2003... web.