Anorexia among Young Females in Today’s Society

Anorexia among Young Females in Today’s Society

The article below involves the identification of a problem in the current world as well as provide possible solutions. This activity involves an analysis of written sources concerning the problem stated in accordance to arriving at its possible solutions. Anorexia is a social problem in the current world today and is widely dealt with among the young adults in the society mostly common among the female gender. There are factors that have influenced the occurrence of this problem. The primary of these factors is that the media has a lot to do with the increase of occurrences concerning anorexia.
Anorexia Nervosa is defined as a psychological illness that is linked to adverse side effects such as distress and depression. Although a nutritional disorder causes the disease, the influence of the media has been a major contributor to its rise in the society. The proliferation and the influence of the media cannot be repudiated. The reason to this conclusion is because the media barrages the public with images and messages that reinforce the idea that a good looking and happy person ought to be thin (Espejo). This case study research article will cover the influence of media and how it has contributed to anorexia. First and foremost, the formulation of a research problem and questions is a mandatory phase in dealing with this problem as below.
Research problem:
The media does have a strong effect on the increase in anorexia cases among young females.

Research questions:
How does the media influence eating choices among young females suffering from anorexia?
What are the messages portrayed by the media concerning body types among young females?
What is the relationship between eating disorders and the media in contribution to the rate of increase among anorexic individuals?
A conduction of secondary data sourcing revealed that in the current world, it is next to impossible to read a magazine or newspaper or watch the television being bombarded with messages that being fat is nothing short of undesirable. Nearly all advertisements use models who are thin and fit to advertise their product. These models are portrayed to be happy because they are thin. The movie also portrays fat people to be ugly and looked down upon. These are all marketing strategies to sell the public products and services that they do no need by creating a psychological need for it. The sad thing is; these tactics work. Moreover, what is sadder is that these messages also reach small children. The result of this message is that is it has fueled an ever-growing obsession with weight in kids. Therefore, children and adolescents end up not eating properly to keep their weight ‘desirable’ thus leading to anorexia (Karin).
Other studies showed that there are many exemplifications that can be given to show how the media is obsessed with thinness and how this obsession has played a primary role in an increase in anorexia. Most of the television personalities are thin; they often look like models. When they employ such individuals, they give out the message that beauty and thinness are linked together. Therefore, the media ought to take responsibility for their actions which has led to portraying this dysfunction. This strategy can be used to lower the cases of anorexia (Mathews &Dawn).
Social media has also played a significant role in triggering and spreading the disease. This is owing to their portrayal of thin people as the ideal body size in most of their post and adverts. However, social media possesses the power to stop or reduce this disorder, despite it being blamed for it. A good illustration of such a platform is Pinterest; the site stopped the use of all words that spread the message to their users that ‘thin’ is the best way to go. Another example is the many anorexia forum sites that encourage people not to be obsessed with their weight by creating a platform where anorexia patients and survivors can share their stories with the aim of encouraging others not to fall into the same trap. An example of such a site is Ana Boot Camp, which is a site that aims at helping people suffering from anorexia recover from their disease.
Possible solutions of the problem in this research case mainly rely upon the media actions in solving this problem. In a nutshell, the media has the power to help prevent, develop, maintain and treat anorexia. However, this can only happen if they become very cautious of the messaged they show to their users and viewers. The reason to this is that these message has a negative impact to their subscribers. They cause poor eating patterns and affect people’s emotional well-being. The media could also aid in the treatment of diseases by contributing to treatment centers, media advocacy, literacy, and activism. It would also be reasonable if the media encourages positive bodybuilding by use of their platforms to help ledge the spread of this disease. By use of the latter stated techniques, the media can play a positive role in controlling this disease.

Works cited.
Espejo, Roman. Eating Disorders. Detroit: Greenhaven, 2012. Print.
Karin, Eli. Obesity, Eating Disorders and the Media. Print.
Maj, Mario. Eating Disorders. New York: J. Wiley, 2003. Print.
Matthews, Dawn D. Eating Disorders Sourcebook: Basic Consumer Health Information about Eating Disorders, including Information about Anorexia Nervosa … Detroit, MI: Omnigraphics, 2001. Print.