By (Trigger Warning: this article discusses eating disorders and eating disorder symptoms)
In less than a decade, the rate of hospital admittance for children under 12 suffering from eating disorders rose by 119% according to the Eating Recovery Center. Exposure to media that negatively impacts body image may play a role in this increase.
What Are Eating Disorders?
Eating disorders are physical and mental illnesses that negatively impact an individual’s ability to consume food in healthy ways. Eating disorders affect millions of Americans and have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness, according to the Eating Recovery Center.
Three of the most common eating disorders are anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating disorder.
People struggling with anorexia tend to restrict their caloric intake for the sake of weight loss. Those diagnosed with bulimia suffer from cycles of binge eating followed by purging via self-induced vomiting. Finally, people battling binge eating disorder suffer from recurring episodes of consuming large quantities of food often accompanied by feelings of guilt, remorse, and loss of control.
Media’s Role
While eating disorders exist independently of mainstream media, exposure to print and digital media can potentially impact a person’s body image and consequently their relationship with food.
“Of American elementary school girls who read magazines, 69% say that the pictures influence their concept of the ideal body shape,” stated the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA). “47% say the pictures make them want to lose weight.”
Many print and digital magazines use photoshop to remove acne, hair, stretch marks, and cellulite from models featured in their pictures. Some even use photoshop to thin the appearance of models. These practices may seem harmless, but they regularly expose people to false representations of what the human body looks like and create harmful narratives around what body types and characteristics are considered acceptable or ideal.
“Culture also plays a role in and can help cause eating disorders,” stated the Eating Recovery Center. “Every day, we are besieged with messages about beauty, unrealistic body images and fad diets.”
Though progress towards more realistic media representation has been made, it is still important to consume media proactively to avoid negative impacts on body image and mental health. NEDA recommends taking the following steps to help prevent mainstream media from significantly, negatively impacting your mental health and body image:
“Use media literacy strategies to think critically about messages you consume and content you create on social media. Test for body positivity by asking key questions: Are the body depictions realistic or digitally altered? What does the message really mean? Why are they sending it? How might it affect someone’s body acceptance? Who created and profits from the message?”
“Are the body depictions realistic or digitally altered? Who created and profits from the message?”
Questions to Ask Yourself About the Media You Consume by NEDA
Resources To Help
For more information about eating disorders and eating disorder recovery, visit NEDA’s website and the Eating Recovery Center’s website at the links below:
National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA): https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/
Eating Recovery Center: https://www.eatingrecoverycenter.com/
Ris Writes 