What Should be Done?

     After researching all the the consequences of what the media is doing to the people today, I have came to the conclusion of what exactly should be done in order to end with this repulsive obsession. With technology advancing more and more everyday, companies should really think twice about the connotation their advertisements give to people all over the world.

      Thankfully, there are companies that understand this and are doing their part into helping change the way a model "should" look like. Dove's Real Beauty Campaign is a great example of a powerful company trying to send a different message to people, specially women. Compared to the 5'8 Victoria's Secret models that weigh a little over 100 pounds, Dove's models come in all shapes and colors, literally. That way, they can prove that beauty comes in all sizes. Not just a size 2 body.

Interview with a Professional

 

Interview with Dr. Gargi Kubal, MD. (Pediatrician)

What are the different types of eating disorders, and what is the difference?

Dr Kubal:There are two major types of eating disorders. One of them is called Anorexia Nervosa, and the other is called Bulimia Nervosa. With Anorexia Nervosa, one restricts themselves from eating in order to not gain weight. With Bulimia Nervosa, it is very different. One eats whatever they want, but due to the fear of also gaining weight they induce self vomiting or attempt to get rid of the weight with extreme exercise.

In your opinion, how big of an impact do you think the media has with this issue?

Dr Kubal: In my personal opinion, I think the media has a huge impact of the way people look at themselves today. I've had several of my patients come in and ask how they could be "skinny", when in reality they are healthy as can be. I think people spend too much time obsessing with how they should really look like, rather than engaging in other beneficial activities.

How can you identify a eating disorder in someone?

Dr Kubal: Identifying a eating disorder can be somewhat challenging. The reason for that is because eating disorders can be identified both physically and emotionally. One of the most common ways is when a person all of us sudden looses interests for eating, seem to be more moody than usual, and demonstrate a fear of gaining weight.

What do you think people, not just teens, should do to prevent this obsession from taking over their minds and everyday lives? 

Dr Kubal: Like I said before, I think people should stop obsessing over photoshoped images of other people. Although it may sound cliche, every person is made to be unique. There is a great difference between health and looking like the next cover of the Vogue magazine. Activities like sports or working out safely will help you have a healthier life style and maintain a healthy body as well.

The Statistics.

* More than 90 percent of girls – 15 to 17 years – want to change at least one aspect of their physical appearance, with body weight ranking the highest. (Source)
* Girls’ self-esteem peaks when they are 9 years old. (McGraw, Carol, “Media, hormones, peer pressure do a number on girls’ confidence”, The News-Sentinel, Mon, Jul. 31, 2006)
* 80% of children who are 10 years old are afraid of being fat. (Source)
* 9 million teens in America below 15 years are obese, that’s three times more than in 1980. (Source)
* Obese boys and girls have significantly lower self-esteem than their non-obese peers. (Source)
* Up to 12% of teen boys are using unproven supplements and/or steroids. (Source)
* Nearly a quarter of girls age 15-17 would consider undergoing plastic surgery. (Source)
*13 percent of girls age 15-17 acknowledge having an eating disorder. (Source)
* 7 in 10 girls believe they are not good enough or do not measure up in some way including their looks, performance in school and relationships. (Source)
*80% of 10-year-old girls have dieted. 90% of high school junior and senior women diet regularly. Young girls are more afraid of becoming fat than they are of nuclear war, cancer, or losing their parents. (Source)
* The top wish among all girls is for their parents to communicate better with them which includes, more frequent and more open conversations, as well as discussions about what is happening in their own lives. (Source)
http://heartofleadership.com/statistics-on-body-image-self-esteem-parental-influence/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jZK3Nih63s

Treatment & Recovery.

     Although eating disorders affect your body physically, this problem is psychological. And that means you can't just take a Tylenol or a a prescribed medication. Therefor, treatment is also psychological. Thankfully, there are many eating disorder treatment centers more than willing to help those in need. Recovery is a great and is proven to work, that even celebrities have gone through it successfully, like the author of "How to Rock Glasses and Braces", Meg Haston.

     In 2011, Meg wrote a novel called "How to Rock Glasses and Braces", which later turned into a series on Nickelodeon. She became very successful, but that same year Meg checked into a Eating Disorder Recovery Center in Arizona. But she was diagnosed with Anorexia, she was not as bad as other women around her. "In and around the lodge, these women spend their hours between individual and group therapy sessions, equine and art therapy, and meals and snacks. I watch them. Crossing the lawn, reading and journaling beneath the sparse palm trees that border the lodge, are women thinner than me."

     At the recovery centers, psychiatrist and dieticians work hard to get girls to understand that they can eat whatever they desire and should enjoy it as they eat it. "Our dietitian explains: We are to take a small amount of our favorite foods typical of a binge. We are meant to taste it, to show ourselves that we are capable of enjoying food, neither avoiding it entirely nor consuming all of it. For many psychologically healthy women, such a task might be enjoyable. The smells might evoke pleasant memories of time with family or friends. Special occasions. But I am instantly transported back to my worst binge/purge episode in recent months." explains Meg. Excersises like these are meant to help girls get back to normal.

     This eating disorders do not go away right away, they take time and dedication before they are officially cleared from our body. " I am learning to celebrate my identity as a writer, a daughter, and a sister, instead of a sick woman. To nurture with gratitude a body that can move and make love and, should I choose, bear a child. I am a Recovering Woman who makes a choice for health every day. Because there is no other choice." And if Meg Hatson was able to push through, and still fight her eating disorder, anyone else can. But at the end of the day, the decision is up to the victim whether to push through or not.

http://www.marieclaire.com/health-fitness/news/eating-disorder-recovery

Know the Signs.

     Like in the Ana Carolina Reston case, she suffered from Anorexia Nervosa. People always suspect something is wrong, but never really know how to read the signs before it is too late. In an article from MayoClinic.com, the staff developed a list of signs to look for:

"Anorexia NervosaWhen you have anorexia nervosa (an-o-REK-see-uh nur-VOH-suh), you're obsessed with food and being thin, sometimes to the point of deadly self-starvation.
Anorexia signs and symptoms may include:

• Refusal to eat and denial of hunger
• An intense fear of gaining weight
• A negative or distorted self-image
• Excessive exercise
• Flat mood or lack of emotion
• Irritability
• Fear of eating in public
• Preoccupation with food
• Social withdrawal
• Thin appearance
• Trouble sleeping
• Soft, downy hair present on the body (lanugo)
• Menstrual irregularities or loss of menstruation (amenorrhea)
• Constipation
• Abdominal pain
• Dry skin
• Frequently being cold
• Irregular heart rhythms
• Low blood pressure
• Dehydration

  Bulimia
When you have bulimia, you have episodes of bingeing and purging. During these episodes, you typically eat a large amount of food in a short duration and then try to rid yourself of the extra calories through vomiting or excessive exercise. You may be at a normal weight or even a bit overweight.

Bulimia signs and symptoms may include:

• Eating until the point of discomfort or pain, often with high-fat or sweet foods
• Self-induced vomiting
• Laxative use
• Excessive exercise
• An unhealthy focus on body shape and weight
• A distorted, excessively negative body image
• Low self-esteem
• Going to the bathroom after eating or during meals
• A feeling that you can't control your eating behavior
• Abnormal bowel functioning
• Damaged teeth and gums
• Swollen salivary glands in the cheeks
• Sores in the throat and mouth
• Dehydration
• Irregular heartbeat
• Sores, scars or calluses on the knuckles or hands
• Menstrual irregularities or loss of menstruation (amenorrhea)
• Constant dieting or fasting
• Possibly, drug or alcohol abuse"

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/eating-disorders/DS00294/DSECTION=symptoms

Ana Carolina Reston

    I can personally tell you it is any model's dream to be signed to a big company like Giorgio Armani or Dior. But for this young Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston, this was't enough. Although she was very successful, and traveled to places like China, Turkey, Mexico and Japan for several modeling agencies; she was diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia, which caused her kidney dysfunction that led into her death in 2006.

     In any other girl's eyes, Ana would could be considered "the perfect girl". She was 5'8, slim, with beautiful hazel eyes. She was exactly what any big agency would look for. But she did not see herself in that way. Although she started the fashion industry as a size 4, Ana adopted a fear of gaining weight. The story behind her fear was when she made her first overseas trip to China in 2004. At a casting she was told she was "too fat", which led into her horrible eating disorders. Although the fashion world can be glamorous and pay very well, it has it downsides. Too many models have died from eating disorders like Anorexia Nervosa, even if they are the ones other girls look at as role models.

    Not only is Ana's death resented in the fashion industry, it was resented the most at her house. " "Take care for your children because their loss is irreparable," Reston's mother, Miriam, told the O Globo newspaper. "Nothing can make the pain go away. No money in the world is worth the life of your child." " Which is why parents should always be aware of their children, not matter the age. Because this eating disorders don't scream for help, one should learn to know the signs.

 http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,230183,00.html

http://www.fashionmodeldirectory.com/models/Ana+Carolina_Reston/ 

 Body Make Over.

     “Size zero, long, straight blonde hair, Caucasian, and blue eyes is the look among females seen in Abercrombie and Fitch.” is the way the author, Lovely Lopez, from a Divine Caroline article starts off her argument. And because of this "common" look throughout advertisements, it causes women to trash their mind with the way they "should look".
     And we can thank Photoshop for this. It can literally create any girl, into the next Megan Fox. "Most women know that the images they see on magazines are airbrushed and distorted in some way. With the use of Adobe Photoshop and the possibility of cosmetic surgeries such as breast implants or liposuctions, women on television and magazines look the way they do. Nonetheless, the need to look and feel thin has driven women to compare themselves to mannequin-like bodies and airbrushed faces of other females in magazines."
     And even though women know the perfection is all fake, it doesn't stop them from attempting to achieve the same look: no matter the consequences. Lopez states how women with eating disorders always relates back to the idea of being "ideally thin". But women are not the only ones affected by the media. With the consistency of these "perfect women", men just expect all women to look like a Victoria Secret model. "With this kind of pressure, women are likely to engage in unhealthy lifestyles to look like Megan Fox or Jenna Jameson. Men admire other men with attractive female partners." And not only does this affect women physically, but their self esteem too. 
     But sadly, companies are willing to pay millions in order to have the type of women they desire. And after so much time of having the same body type as their image, this has become a permanent image for women to compare themselves to.

http://www.divinecaroline.com/self/body-image-and-media

Men are Victims too.

      Although it may seem like women are the media's only targets, it's not true. And an article from NBCnews.com proves that. In any male advertisement you can think of, men have perfectly shaped bodies. Calvin Klein, Armani, Gucci, and even teen brands like Ambercrombie & Fitch, and Hollister. “It affects men, too, and it demands attention.” says Deborah Schooler, a researcher who studies the effect of the media on men's self esteem. All research, statistics and articles are all about women. You could Google "Body image issues" and all you would get is stories and pictures about women.

    Unlike women, men aren't concerned about their weight or jean size. "What men are more concerned about, she says, are other “real-body” factors, like sweat, body hair and body odor." In all advertisements male models look almost too perfect to really exist, and that is what is really hurting other guys.

   But despite their struggle, men are not as affected as women are. '“For boys and men, engaging with these media images is more of a choice,” says Deborah Tolman of the Center for Research on Gender and Sexuality in San Francisco. “There’s just not the same requirement for a man in our society to look a particular way. As a man, you can look terrible and still be very well respected.”' 

     Therefor, what it comes down to is men being concerned with their odor, body hair, and sometimes trying to look better in order to catch more ladies at the beach.

While for girls, they are at the gym trying to maintain a size 2 body.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/15160230/ns/health-mens_health/t/guys-have-body-issues-too/#.UZlVfcpYS7B

Ellen Talking About Body Image

Another Barbie to the Collection.

     Barbie has been around forever, since 1959 to be precise. So you might ask yourself: why are people now so obsessed with being "perfect"? The rate for eating disorders are much greater than they were 10 years ago. In "Helping Girls with Body Image", by Elizabeth Heubeck, the author discusses the problem about helping girls with their image and self esteem since the media is trashing their minds with how they should "really" look like. With technology advancing more and more every single day, a lot more people, specially girls, are exposed to thin size 0 models all over the media."Bombarded with countless media images of thin female models and actresses who look beautiful by modern American standards and appear happy, many girls -- including the youngest and most impressionable -- view them as role models."

      But this is much greater than a simple obsession. It can turn out deadly, due to the risks of adapting an eating disorder. Elissa Gittes, MD, a pediatrician in the division of adolescent medicine at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh explains how a parent can get involved before it is too late. According to WedMD, the average teenage girl gets a daily exposure of 180 minutes compared to only 10 minutes of parental interaction. Because no parent, specially a mother, would enjoy seeing their daughter go through something as horrific as an eating disorder just to please the demands of others.

     Even as a size 0 model myself, I think society as long with the media is lacking variety. I don't think girls should be asked to be 5'8 and weigh 100 pounds in order to have the opportunity to serve as the image to a brand. Because there is so much more to a person than their physical appearance, which is what agencies should look for: not another Barbie.

 http://www.webmd.com/beauty/style/helping-girls-with-body-image