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The Media, Body Image & Eating Disorders

"Eating disorders are complex conditions that arise from a variety of factors, including psychological, interpersonal, and social issues. Media images that help to create cultural definitions of beauty and attractiveness are often acknowledged as being among those factors contributing to the rise of eating disorders." (www.edap.org, 1999)

It is a fact that in the United States, Eating Disorders affect large groups of people. It is estimated that anywhere from 5-10 million adolescent girls and women will struggle with eating disorders and their accompanying borderline conditions and in their shadow, about 1 Million boys and men will struggle with this psychopathology. In total, the existing number of people with eating disorders is almost triple to the number of people living with AIDS. (In the US, a recorded 664,921 people are living with the AIDS virus). Eating disorders are becoming a national epidemic. Society is daily bombarded with messages that 'thin' and 'success' are equal. Natural beauty has not only been compromised by the media, but is constantly under attack by the non-diversification of body image types for societal identification among advertising and mass media. In this paper, we will examine what eating disorders are, how the media exerts influence upon culture, eating and body image stereotyping and lastly, how we can act to create an awareness of proper body image, eating habits and media accountability.

There are two basic types of eating disorder psychopathologies. The National Institute of Mental Health defines them as follows:

"People with this disorder see themselves as overweight even though they are dangerously thin. The process of eating becomes an obsession. Unusual eating habits develop, such as avoiding food and meals, picking out a few foods and eating these in small quantities, or carefully weighing and portioning food. People with anorexia may repeatedly check their body weight, and many...

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The Media, Body Image & Eating Disorders. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 04:52, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1693677.html