Pressure from media to be skinny?

Question

What do you think? Share some thoughts

I'm constantly reading about how the media pressures young women to be skinny, but I've never actually heard someone in the media say "you should be skinny." If anyone does come out and say something of the sort, that person is instantly attacked by Tyra Banks and Oprah Winfrey and whoever else for inducing eating disorders in young girls. The fact that actresses and models are skinny isn't exactly "pressure." If anything all these dumb female empowerment things do, is promote obesity. I'm really sick of hearing the words "I'm big and beautiful", because at that point it doesn't really matter how you look, you're probably unhealthy. I really think the media should stop promoting obesity as an acceptable thing.

Another thing: This isn't just a woman problem. Men feel plenty of pressure from society to look a certain way as well, and they don't have crusaders screaming to leave the poor men alone. Maybe this is why more men are in shape than women

Answer 1

Whenever I watch a movie that was made 20 yrs ago  - the majority of people weren't stick thin, have veneers on their teeth or mountains of silicone. In the 70s you hardly saw it at all. Those elements were there, but the natural look was still embraced. These days it's all about perfection and body image is a big problem. Even though the media didn't openly chant "you should be skinny" it was implied and then someone coined the phrase "thin is in".



The pressure to be thin is everywhere from magazines to videos.  The fashion industry has played a key role in this issue. Clothes especially for females are not designed for curvier figures. Most things now are form fitting to hug your body or mid-drift cut to accentuate your stomach. If you want to be fashionable and wear it well you have to be skinny. Teenagers especially, want to look like their favorite celebrity or singer and all of those people scream perfection. If a celebrity gains a little weight it's plastered all over the tabloids/internet/talk shows and they're publicly humiliated. This is not a positive message.

People are praised for losing weight and told they look better, even if they looked fine before. Back in the day having some meat on your bones was called healthy, now it's a door for ridicule. The diet industry makes millions of dollars from our insecurity and the #1 plastic surgery procedure is liposuction. Some go through extremes just to lose 5lbs, when it's totally unnecessary. Men feel the pressure also and some desire a 6 pack and a leaner body, but men aren't stigmatized in the same way as women. Look @ the sitcoms, they always pair a portly guy with an attractive wife. You never see it the other way around, because it's not acceptable. The misconception of beauty in society has gone way out of control. People got tired of it and the Big & Beautiful crusade was born. This was not to promote obesity, but to stop the stereotypes of beauty that lead to low self-esteem. Everyone should love themselves for who they are, not what society has dictated. Real people don't look like what's portrayed in the media, but we've been brainwashed into believing the hype. Yes, everyone should strive to be healthy  - but nowadays that definition has been manipulated with images that aren't realistic.

Answer 2

They don't have to actually say the words to get their point across.  If advertisers would hire more women with normal weights and not always go for the ones that are actually too skinny then I may agree with you.  But young girls, especially, only see the ones that are unusually thin being portrayed in commercials, movies and TV.  It makes them think that being extremely thin is normal when in reality it isn't.  And if they want to be successful like the actresses and models then they need to be too thin also.  So yes the pressure is there. But having some meat on your bones is actually healthier than being too thin.  So it is just as wrong to promote being too thin as to promote obesity.  Although I don't believe that the media is promoting obesity.  What they are promoting is accepting yourself for who you are.  Not everyone can look as good as a movie star so you should accept what you have been given.  For example recently Britney Spears was given criticism because she had put on a little weight.  Now to look at her she looked fine.  But the media jumped all over about how fat she looked.  She didn't look fat at all.  She just didn't look as thin as she was as a teen before she had children.  So yes the pressure is there.  This pressure causes eating disorders and low self esteem.  And as far as men being pressured, well men aren't seen as attractive if they are too thin.  Also their metabolism is different from a womans so maintaining a healthy weight is easier for them than for women.  I'm not saying it is easy for them just that it is easier than for women.  Maybe this is why they seem to be in better shape to you than women.  Also they don't have to bear children.

Answer 3

yeah I know what you mean. I mean at first in commercials its like showing really skinny super fit women.  But if its not showing them, then they're showing pretty big, really curvy women and being all "big is beautiful, love your curves" and whatever. So its always either women who are too big or too skinny. I think that we all have a certain healthy size. I mean, if you eat healthy and exercise regularly, then whatever size you end up being naturally is whatever size you should be happy with.  But I guess it just depends. Like I don't really eat healthy or work out, but I'm still skinny. But even so, I don't think that this is right. I should be more healthier. So weight doesn't always reveal how good you are to your body. If you ask me, one should just put normal people on commercials. They should just take a handful of women who eat healthy and exercise and put them on TV, no matter what their sizes are and how big or skinny they are.