Welcome to our Society. Our motto that is emblazoned on the entrance as we enter this world is "Sex Sells" We cant help but to look around and see that it sells on magazines, it gets ratings, it sells products, its on billboards, its on the internet and its on television.
Its not only the sex but the gorgeous woman who emblazons everything about it. There is no shortage of these women to sell products but what there is a shortage of is "reality"
The woman you see is not the woman you get when you look at the billboard today. Welcome to the technological age. Photoshop and airbrushing is the in thing. Computers not only take care of the zits and crows feet...they will also make a person thinner ....literally shaping the nearly impossibly unattainable physical ideal.
A few mouse click and the effects of aging and eating go away. This might not seem exactly in your face dangerous. But this is the foundation that our children's self-esteem and body image rests on. The shakier the foundation you have, the more likely is that it will collapse later in life. It's not rocket science.
Look at Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana) ..... Brenda Song (Suite Life of Zac and Cody) ....Miranda Cosgrove (iCarly) these are the "teenage" actors that our children look up to. How are you supposed to teach your teenage daughter that it is okay to have a little acne when none of the teenage celebrities seem not to have any?
As they look forward to the adult counterparts that are in the spot light today... they feel that they should become and immitate theses people .....that theses people will become their ideal mold to grown (or shrink) into in their own adulthood...How are you to tell them that eating a bowl of ice cream is not a death sentence? .... especially when so many young people today feel that it is.
It is estimated that somewhere between 8 million to 10 million women in the United States suffers from some sort of eating disorder... One in 200 American women suffers from anorexia.Two to three in 100 American women suffers from bulimia. Nearly half of all Americans personally know someone with an eating disorder. And its growing
Do you think that its a statistical accident. Pick up the Cosmopolitan magazine and you will see articles like
"Why Guys Cheat in the Summer"
"Smooth Sexy Legs: Five Simple Steps"
"Why Guys Dump Girls They Dig"
"The Look That Keeps Him Hot for You"
"Clothes That Flatter Your Butt"
A Study once confirmed that the more fashion magazines a girl is exposed to, the more likely there will be a poor body image in the future.
By now, an avid reader of cosmo is saying "but they have article on "Sexy at Any Size" ...you know articles that are supposed to boost. a woman's self-esteem" Do you really believe that a few articles balance out the many ads, columns, articles , ads and pictures that depict and are designed to inspire a goal of futility called perfection.
The Tabloids are even worse. They try to sell their degrading of a famous persons cellulite as a idea to make "real women" feel "normal" How is a "famous real woman" supposed to reconcile the fact that "the real woman" being highlighted as "normal" is something that by the world is clearly as undesirable as what they see in the mirror every morning?
Where do you think people who suffer from eating disorders get their inspiration. From Tabloids and Magazines.
As an encouragement to further lose weight, members often exchange thinspiration (or thinspo) or even reverse thinspiration.
Thinspiration is an image or video montages of slim women, often celebrities, who may be anything from naturally slim to emaciated with visibly-protruding bones.
Reverse Thinspiration is an image or video of fatty food, overweight or obese people intended to induce disgust and motivate further weight loss.
Thinspirational clips circulate widely on video sharing sites, pro-anorexic blogs often post thinspirational entries, and many pro-anorexic forums have threads dedicated to sharing thinspiration.
and if this does not cut it there is always plastic surgery to get you on your way. In the past 15 years alone plastic surgery has increased 800 percent....you heard that right...800 percent. From Liposuction to footlift and dare we forget implants we've allowed our daughters to cut themselves up in the name of perfection.
Its not the rich that are only doing these procedures two- third of American plastic surgeries are by people who make less than $50,000 a year, that is not the rich, that is Mr. and Mrs. Joe Blue-collar.
Some people have chose in the name of perfection to preform plastic surgery on themselves with devastating results..
.http://www.wlky.com/health/19924918/detail.htmlImage has become everything and the image that people are shown to attain is nearly impossible to reach.
We are not only harming ourselves by allowing this to happen we are ruining our marriages and the future of our children's lives. True beauty will always come from within and it is time we show others that is what we truly believe and that it is not just an idea.
True 
Lifetime
Comments (8)
Great blog!
I have been battling within myself about having my breast implants removed. They don't "fit" me anymore- I don't need big boobs to look good, and I really want to instill that in my daughters. I have 3 girls, and it would break my heart if they ever felt inadequate as a woman for having a small chest. I am at a point in my life now where I kinda think implants are ridiculous... there's a million other things I probably could've spent that $5500 on. And now it's going to cost me $7700 to have them out with a lift.
Just say no girls!
I once contemplated getting breat implants, but decided against it. I'm glad I have a small bust, not just because they're part of me, but also because I can pull off certain looks that bigger chested women cannot.
@sortingandforting@xanga - Absolutely! So many women think that getting implants will "make shirts fit better".. I have found the opposite to be true... I have a really hard time with bathing suits and dresses too. And when I do find something that fits- it often just looks obscene cause my boobs are just pouring out everywhere lol, sick of it.
I have one very young daughter but I already worry about it. I never liked the fakeness of celebrities and valued natural beauty more, but still felt inadequate in that regard. I think the most important thing is to really instill the idea of inner beauty and really really emphasize it to at least balance society's pressure to conform to their idea of outer beauty. My sister in law is a super model and I love her, but hope it doesn't end up negatively affecting my daughter. She has exceedingly large implants and has had a nose job and lives a fabulous life in LA but not just anyone can pull that off. It might feel like a lot to live up to for a niece.
I think it's up to the parents to explain that. I read fashion magazines as a teen. I knew they were airbrushed. I knew the people on t.v. were videoshopped, and I knew that they had professional make-up artists. It's not a hidden fact. If I hadn't understood those facts, I wouldn't have been allowed to read them. Yes, it is everywhere, and sometimes I'm like "man I wish I had those legs" or whatever, but in reality, I know that even she doesn't really have those legs. Every woman has parts of their body that they love or that they hate. Media or no media, it's up to you as a mom to be a good role model and teach your child that she is beautiful. It's just going to be a little harder :)
I hate my nose, I wish I were thinner and taller, and I hope my breasts stay perky forever, but I would never have surgery to change any of these things. If I did, I wouldn't look like myself, and because of my mother being a strong role model, I happen to like being myself (most days).
if you can compete w/pieces of paper w/pictures on them, or a plastic box full of wires...if you're going to denounce things WHILE OWNING THEM you shouldn't be having kids.
it's refreshing to see a guy recognize these things. thanks.
parents need to instill esteem and self-love (not based on outer "beauty") in their kids to slow the societal tidal wave of disorders wiping out the current generation. parents are the most influential protective factor against it, in my opinion.
It's ultimately a psychological game that big name corporations and industries play to draw in as much of a profit as humanly possible. Attack the consumers self esteem to the point where they feel that they need the product in order to feel good about themselves.
Anorexia Nervosa is a tough one though, only because although tabloids, television, etcetera promote it subliminally (or openly) A.N. is a disorder that deals with the unconscious (Think Freud).
Point being, in today's society sex doesn't sell anymore.
Fantasy is the in-thing.