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Unrealistic Body Images

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Unrealistic Body Images
Looks don't matter; its inner beauty that really counts. We grew up hearing these phrases. Our parents and teachers taught us not to judge people based on their looks. If all these things are true, then why do most of us judge people solely on their outer appearance? Why does the media put so much pressure on us to look a certain way, or fit into a specific size? Why do we still see headlines like “How to Lose Weight and Get Him to Like You”? Why does the media use severe airbrushing techniques to hide any flaws and impurities a person has? Magazines and media sites should not be allowed to drastically alter and manipulate people’s images and portray those images as the perfect goal one should strive to achieve. Being bombarded with unrealistic body images could have devastating effects on people, especially on women. Women need to start feeling happy and comfortable in their …show more content…
We rarely see real women portrayed in the media. This is why most women have low self-esteem and are unhappy with their looks. Women yearn to look like the women on the covers of magazines, and on the front pages of fashion websites with, as stated by former Cosmopolitan editor Leah Hardy, “ 22-inch waists, but they also had breasts and great skin. They had teeny tiny ankles and thin thighs, but they still had luscious hair and full cheeks” (Hardy, 2010). These women don't exist, but we still strive to look like them. Photoshopping in the media is not only altering images, but it is also altering the definition of beauty in our minds. It gives people the idea that if they don’t look like the people on those covers, they wont fit in with society. Magazines and social media sites need to realize that they are planting fake ideals, almost impossible to achieve, into young girls’ impressionable minds, and they are changing their concept of what really is beautiful and

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