The media is known to glamorize the thin, without being aware of the damage that they are causing to millions of women who do not fit into a size zero or two. Post doctoral researcher Shelly Grabe and psychology professor Janet Hyde describe an analysis where they found that exposure to media depicting ultra-thin models increased women’s concerns about their bodies and the likelihood of engaging in unhealthy eating behaviors, such as excessive dieting.
These findings may seem obvious to many, but it is very common for women to resist the idea of societal influence, like the media. That’s why it’s extremely important for every woman to be conscious of the stigmas that are constantly being fed to us. Weight loss pills, extreme dieting, and gym advertisements are at an all-time high, because they are selling their definition of beauty to you. We need to reevaluate what values are important to us and forget about what the societies define beautiful. Embrace your curves because what makes you beautiful is not trying to fit in, it’s standing out!
What’s even more concerning are these images of super thin women trickling down to girls as young as the age of 5 -8. The message, “thin is in” may not directly cause eating disorders but they help place a value on what society deems as beautiful. It’s time to be gutsy and take a stand against the objectification of women in magazines, movies, ads, TV shows, and cartoons- -that kinds of media.
“A study of 4,294 network television commercials revealed that 1 out of every 3.8 commercials send some sort of “attractiveness message,” telling viewers what is or is not attractive.”
ABIDE-Association for Body Image Disordered Eating
Many non-profit organizations have already taken a stance against the sexualization of girls. SPARK! is a girl-fueled activist movement demanding an end to the sexualization of women and girls in media. Recently SPARK successfully petitioned Seventeen Magazine to publish photographs of models that didn’t retouch a model’s shape. In response, Seventeen magazine vowed to “never change girls’ body or face shapes” and will include only images of “real girls and models who are healthy.” A huge step in the right direction. For more information on SPARK or to get involved, click here.
Actress Geena Davis is also leading an ongoing movement in the women equality movement. Geena and I met in Washington DC as members of The Healthy MEdia Commission of which she and past FCC Commissioner Debra Taylor Tate are chairs.
Geena established the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media to provide concrete data to Hollywood highlighting the lack of strong female roles in children’s programming. In her website, seejane.org, you can find some disturbing, yet all-too-real facts about the inequality within gender in the media. Some examples are:
MYTH: Boys and girls are equally represented in film and television.
FACT: Even among the top-grossing G-rated family films, girl characters are out numbered by boys three-to-one.
MYTH: Family entertainment is a safe haven for female characters.
FACT: Astoundingly, even female characters in family films serve primarily as “eye candy.”
MYTH: Gender imbalance issues have gotten better over time.
FACT: Statistically, there has been little forward movement for girls in media in six decades.
We have a long way to go on the road to body image appreciation, but with a little persistence, we can make a difference together:
-Surround yourself with positive, uplifting people.
-Sometimes when family isn’t enough, search for support groups and communities of like-minded women. -Become an informed citizen, know whats going on in the world, and lend a helping hand whenever you can.
-Lastly, but most importantly LOVE your body because body confidence is by far the sexiest dress any woman can wear.