Ideas

I had this idea/urge to see exactly how many overt and covert "be thin and look this way" messages were in issues of magazines either people I know or I personally read. I'm going to go spend some time cutting apart the Cosmo issue of April 2009. If it's effective in proving a point, I'll go hunting for some other magazines. Maybe a giant collage of pictures and words will be good.

Close to Home

So, I sent out an anonymous survey on Facebook to about 70 girls I know. So far, 19 have responded (I don't know which ones answered but it's personally effected me all the same).

I was saddened but not surprised by the answers the girls (ages 16-21) gave.

Q1: How often do you think about your physical appearance daily?
multiple times
whenever I walk past a mirror
constantly
everytime someone else looks at me
almost all the time
almost always

Q2: Have you ever cried because you felt not pretty enough?
11/19 girls said yes.

Q3: Have you ever not eaten what you wanted to because it had too many calories?
89.5% said yes.


Q4: How does the average supermodel make you feel about yourself?
insufficient
fat
fatter
like i wish i could be as skinny and toned as them
fat
fat
ugly
shitty
huge
the average supermodel is a body image to strive towards, albeit an extreme, unattainable goal
fat
fat
that you need to be skinny to be pretty

Q5: How often do you feel the need to be skinnier?
daily
often
always
every day
constantly
I would love to be skinnier
most days
all the time
daily
frequently
too much
almost always

Q6: Do you feel the media's definition of beauty is fair?
The response to this question worried me most
Only 73.7% said no.
Yet, 89.5% don't eat what they want because it has too many calories. This means that not all these girls agree that the media's definition of beauty is unfair. Is this because they truly think the media is not an influence on the need to be skinny or is because they think that the media's ideal image is really beautiful and what they should strive to be?

These numbers and responses impacted me even more than national statistics. These are girls that I personally know and interact with. And I can think of maybe 8 of the 70 who would still look healthy after losing 10lbs. Yet, almost all of them feel fat, don't eat what they want, and feel the need to be skinner daily.

Media and the Numbers

The numbers are scary to look at. The influence the media has over body image and self esteem is astronomical. You never really think that people are that susceptible to advertising, but we are. Teens, adolescents, women, men, we all are blasted with "you should be this" or "you should look this way" or "people will like you if you look this way" everyday.

It's not even just advertising, it's in movies and television and books and magazines.

One study found that the schematic association of attractiveness and thinness with goodness was present in over 100 female characters appearing in 23 Walt Disney animated films.

Another study found that almost 70% of the adolescent girls asked stated that pictures in magazines influence their conception of the “perfect” body shape, and over 45% indicated that those images motivated them to lose weight.

In a study on fifth graders, 10 year old girls and boys told researchers they were dissatisfied with their own bodies after watching a music video by Britney Spears or a clip from the TV show "Friends".

Statistics show that the media is stereotyping "beauty" and "attractiveness" into tiny groups of people. Yes, some people are 5'7", 117lbs. But most people aren't. And those people ARE still beautiful and should feel that way.

Is it okay that today's fashion models weigh 23% less than the average female, and a young woman between the ages of 18-34 has a 7% chance of being as slim as a catwalk model and a 1% chance of being as thin as a supermodel. However, 69% of girls in one study said that magazine models influence their idea of the perfect body shape. Why are we trying to make these already beautiful, normal girls strive to be something they aren't?

Yes, eating disorders are an extreme result of this impact. But they happen. To millions of people in our country. And those who don't develop eating disorders still have a sad body image. They shouldn't. The media and the public should be promoting inner beauty, being a good caring person. Not spending billions of dollars in diet and cosmetic advertisements.

I want to prove that this happens even to people in our area. I'm going to go around asking people some questions. I'll get back to you.

Literally, Starves to Death

"I'm starving to death"
An everyday exaggeration, nothing more... right?
Wrong.

For those suffering from eating disorders, this is a reality. For those suffering in the shadows, and even those living in the spotlight, it is a constant struggle. People die everyday from anorexia and bulimia.
Thursday, November 16, 2006: 5'7", 84lb model Ana Carolina Reston died. She should have weighed a healthy 146 according to a BMI chart. She lived on apples and tomatoes. She was the second model to die in 2006. In August, 22-year-old Luisel Ramos suffered a fatal heart attack during a fashion show in Uruguay. It was claimed she had been living off a diet of lettuce and soft drinks for three months.

Thankfully, some action was taken after these deaths. Madrid, Spain put a ban on "too skinny" models in runway shows. They have to have a BMI over 18, which is still rather skinny. London Fashion Week almost followed this rule but decided not to, sadly.
Spanish official Concha Guerra said, "Fashion is a mirror and many teenagers imitate what they see on the catwalk."

Fighting Back

Despite all the negative vibes coming from the media monsters out there, some companies, like Dove, are fighting back. Dove has started the "Campaign for Real Beauty", a media resource for real women.

"It helps women learn to think outside of the media’s twisted view on beauty. Women see an unattainable image of beauty in the media and Dove is helping to remind women they are beautiful in their own way. Dove also helps young girls build better self-esteems with their self-esteem fund. The Campaign funds resources that educate young women on being positive about their bodies, and also uses “real women” in their advertisements."

According to Dove, only 2% of women would use the word beautiful to describe themselves. 81% agree that the media sets an unrealistic standard of beauty. 91% agree its time for a change.
Dove is doing it's best to start this change.
More companies need to join in.


Watch this!

Thinspiration?

Anger is not even a sufficient word for what I feel when viewing these pages. Disgust, horror, sadness, and shock are better fits. Prettythin.com and other related sites campaign for "thinspiration" - meaning they portray "pretty" girls who are in reality, disgustingly and dangerously skinny. The tagline for PrettyThin.com is "thinspiration for those in need". The first link to promoting extreme diets and eating disorders quotes a Radiohead song (completely out of context):

I don't care if it hurts,
I want to have control.
I want a perfect body,
I want a perfect soul.
I want you to notice,
when I'm not around.
You're so fucking special,
I wish I was special.

Every advertisement includes dieting tips and "ways to be beautiful". There are pages and pages of women the site creators promote as "beautiful", when in reality they are in physical danger.


Under the "beautiful" tab, they give advice on how to stay beautiful and skinny, and how to be anorexic. These are direct quotes:

"At a certain weight, which is different for everyone, you will lose your period. This is a good thing because it means that you’re losing weight. Still, it would be wise if you’d take calcium supplements, if you don’t already. Don’t let your mother find out about your lost period because she will most likely take you to the doctor. Never under any circumstances tell a doctor that you’ve lost your period. They will have you in an eating disorder clinic faster than you can say "What the hell?". Before you go to the doctor’s, make sure that you have a date to tell them in case they ask about your last period, and make sure the date is believable."

- Getting a pedicure is a good way to distract from eating and too make yourself feel prettier.

- Fasting is the loveliest sin,
Nirvana emerges from such
Sanctity comes when it's time to weigh in,
Though we know that we weigh far too much

Q. - Will I get too thin?

A. - Never!! Well just be careful like I said earlier. You don’t want to waste away. You want people to be jealous of you and how you look cause that is the biggest compliment.

I think this site needs no other commenting, as I'm sure those even near sanity can see how awful it is. It is sad that people truly believe in this ideal of beauty to the extreme that they will give advice on how "not to die but still look thin enough to". Who is to blame for this phenonmen? There is a whole underground realm out there of these pro-ana sites.

There are hundreds of sites out there promoting the message that yes, you should stop eating - that is the only way to be beautiful. Even worse, people eating it up (pun intended). Here is some comments by readers of these sites:

"I am also so jealous! I LOVE all the hipbones! Mine are finally starting to look that way, but nowhere near enough yet. And my ribs/spine are really showing, so that helps! I have lost 80 lbs in the past 6 mos. (I am a mom of 3 young kids... I adore them, but I need my body back!) and I am SO not done! I still have a few more to go until I hit my next goal. I am getting close to the double digits again, so at least I'm getting there. Thank you so much for these pictures! They will DEFinitely help me! Hopefully soon I will be skinny enough (will that EVER happen? lol) to be able to post some pictures that look as good as these!"

"Bones define who we really are, let them show. "

"Ask me to show you perfect and I will show you a thin person."

I understand freedom of speech, and I do not think these sites should be taken down, but I do truly believe anyone who believes in "thinspiration" should seek professional help. My goal for this blog is to show people what "beauty" should be defined as, the hypocracy of the media industry, and the influence of the media on people - sometimes with effects as extreme as eating disorders.

vs.