Preview

Anorexia Nervosa Research Paper

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
678 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Anorexia Nervosa Research Paper
Anorexia: The Role of Media

Author’s Name
Institution

Anorexia: The Role of Media
Anorexia nervosa refers to a mental illness associated with stressful physical outcomes. Despite this illness being a disorder of nutrition, the media had played a part in fuelling the increase of the sickness in the society. The effect of the media as well the proliferation of anorexia can 't be refuted. This is due to the fact that the media assaults the public with images and messages reinforcing the concept that for individuals to be happy they have to be thin. In the current world, it is not possible to open a newspaper or magazine, to listening to the radio or to turn on the television without being faced with messages that plumpness is not desirable. The frightening problems are that those messages also reach the children. This has caused most children to be fixated on their weight. Those messages have caused a number of adolescents not to eat well in the name of caring for their weight.
Examples have been gotten illustrating how the obsession of the media on slimness has played a part in anorexia. Majority of
…show more content…
This may only happen if they are warnings of the pictures they show the public. They ought to avoid conveying messages or showing images that focus on thinness’ value (Arnett, 2000). This is due to the fact that such messages have a negative effect on the majority of the viewers. They influence the emotional well-being of individuals and can cause poor eating habits amongst women that believe in the culture of western. In spite of the media leading to the development and maintenance of anorexia, they may also aid with the curing and prevention of the anorexia disorder. With the increasing prevalence of body distress in the society, it might be cautious for the media to campaign for positive body building texts to aid fight the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Best Essays

    This paper will discuss Anorexia Nervosa as an eating disorder that predominantly affects girls and young women. In industrial countries, such as the United States the disorder’s prevalence can be as high as 370 per 100,000 (Hoek & van Hoeken, 2003). Anorexia nervosa may affect a patient’s mental and physical condition to such an extent that involuntary hospital admission is inevitable.…

    • 2149 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Behavioural explanations of anorexia nervosa (AN) suggest that slimming becomes a ‘habit’, through stimulus response mechanisms. For example, the person goes on a diet and receives praise either for their efforts or their new slimmer appearance. Operant conditioning then takes effect as the admiration from others further reinforces their dieting behaviour. Rewards may also come in the form of attention gained from parents by not eating. Behavioural psychologists also propose anorexia as a phobia concerning the possibility of gaining weight. The portrayal of thin models on TV and in magazines is a significant contributory factor in body image concerns and the drive for thinness among Western adolescent girls.…

    • 659 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Anorexia victims may see being thin as the key to happiness and success. It is proven that television is a leading cause of anorexia. For example, in Fiji, “big women were considered beautiful. After the television arrived in 1995, Fiji girls began talking about diets. By 1998, Fiji girls said they felt ‘too big’ or ‘fat’”. Magazines and Billboards are another leading cause of anorexia. They advertise thin, beautiful models who always appear to be having fun. Stress is another cause of the disease, events in a person’s life can lead to anorexia. People with depression or low self-esteem are prone to anorexia, thinking that skinniness will solve all their problems (Graves, “Chapter Four”). Anorexia is a…

    • 549 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I have never experienced Anorexia Nervosa myself but I can say I have seen some of my very good friend suffer from this very dangerous disease that a lot of people in this world struggle with. “Nine out of 10 people with anorexia are and one in every 100 U.S women is anorexic” http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/eating-disorders/anorexia-nervosa/understanding-anorexia-basics…

    • 1501 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Instead, they argue that the media talks about valuable information on health and people’s well being. They also discuss awareness of eating disorders, through magazines, articles, and television programs. Through the media, they educate people about the danger of abusing food and help them be aware that they are not alone in their journey. The media shows a variety of body shapes and sizes; it influences young people about accepting their weight, provides positive plus size role models. What actually affects the self-esteem of these girls’ stems from many causes that have nothing to do with the media’s influence. For example, internal issues, family pressure, and peer pressure can provoke an eating disorder. Not only do women feel pressure from the media to control their weight but also receive peer pressure from, their boyfriends, husbands, parents, family and from stores that carry clothes that only carry sizes that fit small petite girls. Also, if a girl is already lacks the necessary self-confidence that she needs, it would make it easier for these outside influences to make matters…

    • 845 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the Psychological report that I read, the authors really accentuated the point that media has made unattainable expectations for girls, adolescent girls, and young women and their bodies. Starting at the age of seven, young girls of all race and body have been thrown into the idea that their bodies aren’t as great as those in media. The media has forced many people to feel body dissatisfaction, causing physical and mental health problems. In this modern day and age, thin women are dominating media, such as movies, magazines and television. Being thin is consistently a more emphasized and rewarded aspect. While being thin is over-represented, overweight characters are underrepresented, and much more frowned upon in media. Most people don’t recognize that modern women in media are thinner than the population, as well as thinner throughout the decades, and because of this, the criteria for anorexia has become thinner as well. Fashion models, cartoons, movie and television actresses, Playboy Bunnies, and Miss America Pageants have all instilled the thought in women that media portrayals are reality. Because of media portrayal, body dissatisfaction has been the core aspect behind consistent eating disorders in women, such as bulimia, as well as low-self esteem, depression and obesity. Modern day media is showcasing bodies that are otherwise out of reach. These bodies are skewed and ingrained in women’s brains to adopt them into reality. Decreased satisfaction in bodies result in some negative eating behaviors such as dieting, bingeing and purging, as well as skipping meals. As mentioned in the report, different test have proven that such constant exposure to thin, or ideal, body images “shapes young women’s…

    • 466 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    eating disorders

    • 1141 Words
    • 5 Pages

    What has the world come to when women are given the message at a very young age, that in order to be happy or successful they must be thin. Our society repeatedly sends the message that thin is beautiful. Today every time we walk into a store we are surrounded by images of skinny, beautiful models that appear on the front cover of all fashion magazines. In the media, we daily see weight-loss programs advertisements featuring young underweight women. Diet commercials are constantly appearing on our television screens telling us that once we lose weight will be happier. This shows that the American culture tends to value people on their physical appearance rather than other important qualities. As a result, eating disorders have been on the increase because of the value society places on being thin. Media is brainwashing society into believing that being thin is important and necessary. Eating disorders are a common problem in our society but have not been acknowledged as much as they should. There are three subtypes of eating disorders: Anorexia nervosa, Bulimia nervosa and Binge eating. However, society is not the only contributing factor to eating disorders. Women with eating disorders have a difficultly controlling their actions. They suffer from low self-esteem which drives them toward perfectionism. Women set themselves standards that are unhealthy, physically and emotionally. These eating disorders can be life threatening if not treated on time. An examination of our society reveals that they are one of the major contributing factors to the three eating disorders among women.…

    • 1141 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Society places a large importance on being fit. Media takes it a little far and portrays the ideal girl to be super thin, to a point where it is unrealistic. There are many girls who suffer from this disorder, making it a perfect example of sociological imagination. Anorexia affects an estimated 5-20% of American women. This disorder affects so many individuals because our culture is constantly bombarding us with images of what the “ideal” perfect woman looks like.…

    • 669 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It is proven that more than half of a million American teenagers have an eating disorder. Is the media to blame for this large number of eating disorders? These eating disorders have been documented in medical history since the 1800s. The media contributes to what teenagers believe is “thin and beautiful”. Having an eating disorder can cause many negative physical effects to the body. Not only are there many negative physical effects from eating disorders, there are mental and emotional effects too. One opposing argument may be that many people may have is the fact that the media could have a positive affect on eating disorders. Thus, eating disorders can be attributed to the media because the portrayal of thin and beautiful models puts pressure on the average teen.…

    • 1306 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    While magazines covers, articles, and commercials promote healthy living and exercising, they also use images of thin models, who are obviously anorexic that allows children and young adults to subconsciously view skinny as beautiful and healthy. An HBO documentary, Thin, by Lauren Greenfield and the article Media Influences Affect Teenagers Resulting In Eating Disorders written by Tumblr famous blogger, who goes by the name, LisaMarie Out Loud both show and state how the media can have a detrimental effect on people with body image that leads to eating disorders.…

    • 1559 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Within the past few years more and more attention has been drawn to the victims of eating disorders. These victims try to lose weight in anyway that they can. These disorders are caused by factors such as stress, family problems, and traumatic events. Despite the psychologically proven reasons, blame is still put on the media. To put blame on the media is ignorant.…

    • 1641 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Dying To Be Thin

    • 486 Words
    • 2 Pages

    More females are diagnosed with Anorexia Nervosa when compared to males however, this disorder does not discriminate. An individual that is diagnosed with this disorder view themselves as overweight even when they are underweight and continue to engage in unhealthy weight loss tactics. The video “Dying to be Thin” depicts a story with a young girl that is struggling with her weight and feels as though she is not thin enough. This girl begins to engage in actions like binging and purge eating in order to lose weight and continues to believe she is overweight. The girl in the video thrives to be thin and yearns for the control in her life of having an eating disorder. The article Anorexia nervosa: Friend or foe? By Serpell, L., Treasure, J., Teasdale, J., & Sullivan, V., the researchers asked people with an eating disorder to write a letter to their eating disorder being their friend and their enemy. Results demonstrated there were common themes that were being covered up through these individuals disorders. So often, there are underlying issues that impact the eating disorders and it is important to seek out…

    • 486 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Anorexia In America Essay

    • 2866 Words
    • 12 Pages

    Obtaining the suitable treatment is extremely important. Understanding the factors that influence eating disorders is important and critical due to this high mortality rate. It is the third most chronic illness among adolescents, with a mortality rate 12 times higher than all other causes of death for females between 15-24 years old (RCF, 2002). Anorexia begins as an attempt to lose weight and turns into a life threatening disease that affects the individual, the family and society. Up to 50% of college women experience disordered eating behaviours this usually occurs within the first year of college (Cohen, 2005). Anorexia mainly affects females, 0.5% - 3.7 % of women will suffer with anorexia sometime in their life (RCF, 2002). Approximately 4% – 6% of anorexics are male (Halmi, 2005), most are athletes and in sports that require weight…

    • 2866 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Anorexia Nervosa is a serious problem in the United States. Teenagers is the most popular age group that gets involved with eating disorders such as Anorexia. The symptoms, the statistics, and much more explains why this particular disease is harmful. It affects people both physically and psychologically. As a country, we need to establish prevention programs that could be used as a resource in both school and public settings. Doing so will help decrease the number of people with anorexia and more complicated health issues.…

    • 1050 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Movies commonly portray women as being sexy and thin, so do advertisements and even some book describe women as so. This has resulted in many women trying to achieve the looks of actresses in Western countries, as thinness is promoted as the ideal female form due to the presence of such media. While trying to achieve such figures, women could develop disorders such as Anorexia or a chronic low self-esteem (as a result of being unable to achieve the figure). In order to achieve what the media portrays, they sacrifice their personal health. This has resulted in campaigns aimed to educate girls and women on the risks associated with Anorexia, showing how society puts pressure on women to conform to its definitions.…

    • 484 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays