The Media Influences On Eating Disorders
July 29th, 2007 | 
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Body image is one of the primary reasons for eating disorder is the media influence’s on eating disorders, the TV shows and movies that we watch, as well as the magazines and newspapers that we read, continually bombard us with pictures and images of beauty that is not only a manufactured “picture” of beauty, it’s a very unhealthy picture of beauty.
With all of the media influence’s on eating disorders not only are the pictures that we seen in all the advertising touched up so as to get rid of the imperfections of the model, but the models are often painfully and un healthfully skinny.
A factors in the lives, and our raising, of our children is that the television in our household has taken on the role of a babysitter, a way to spend time, or even a place to provide role models.
Our children are very susceptible to peer pressure, both from their friends and the movies, or T. V. that they watch, and eating disorders often occur during, or stem from the way they grew up during, their childhood.
The average female model, that are the the media influence’s on eating disorders seen in printed advertisements, T. V. or movie advertisement, has a body weight that is nearly 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 the media influence’s on eating disorders with 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.
Almost 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 influence’s on eating disorders should be more responsible when it comes to the images that are placed upon our impressionable children.
By: Mike Herman
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Posted in Eating Disorders