Sherry’s Blog

“Magazines, TV shows and films are chock-full of toned women and muscular men without an obvious trace of body fat. Although such bodies can be the product of intense diets, workout regimens, genetics, cosmetic surgery or even photo retouching, adolescents are trying to get those same physiques through dietary supplements, hormones and steroids.” (“Lawrence Journal-World & News”) http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2005/aug/16/study_teens_see/?living

Nowadays, so many young teens are obsessed with their physical appearances. Most teens are not satisfied with their looks and/or body and wish that they looked differently. Sometimes this obsession with how their bodies look can lead to severe mental problems such as eating disorders. For example, Anorexia and Bulimia. Most of the cause for the obsession with how we look is from the media. The media is constantly showing us pictures of “perfect” people. These images are everywhere. They’re on television, in magazines, on the internet, etc. They are giving people the wrong impression that you need to be beautiful to be happy.

Magazines, however, state that they assume that the readers of their magazines know that a lot of their photos have been edited and retouched. However, that is not true at all. When young teens look at the glossy pages of a magazine, they believe that’s what you have to look like to be liked by everyone. We get the wrong impression that being thin means being beautiful and being happy. Young girls and boys do not realize the fact that all the pictures of “big stars” and the “top celebrities” that appear in magazines and on the internet have probably all been edited or retouched in one way or another, and that no one in the world is completely perfect.

Therefore, I think that magazines should either show more pictures of real people that aren’t edited and look as they actually should. It is terrible that people have this false perception of how beauty equals happiness. The media is causing a lot of problems nowadays showing the viewers all these false images. It is especially corrupting the young teens, and it is very bad, and it should be stopped.

For more information:

http://kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/problems/body_image.html.

http://parentingteens.about.com/od/bodyimage/f/media_bodyimage.htm.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/04/28/48hours/main551362.shtml.

http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/retouch/glamour-model-retouch.jpg.

http://www.masternewmedia.org/news/2006/10/18/media_advertising_reality_and_the.htm.

http://www.baysideonline.com/8082/medias-teachings-of-beauty-to-our-teenagers/.

http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2005/aug/16/study_teens_see/?living

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-07/cfta-tdb071603.php.

Picture Credit:

http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/retouch/glamour-model-retouch.jpg

http://pixelperfekt.com/gallery/albums/userpics/normal_retouch2.jpg