Magazines and media
I watch TV and read maagzines. Who doesn't? The common thing I see these days are 'WOW! Beyonce shows off her hot body on the beach' or 'Jennifer Anniston loses fourty pounds and wows'. Then there things like 'Why did Katy Perry gain weight?'' or 'Kate Middleton packs on the pounds'.
Needless to say, this annoys the life out of me. The media (including magazines, radio, TV, or whatever) is so focussed on people's bodies and how they look. Beyonce lost weight and looks thin? So what? Why is that worthy of news? I mean, that is great for her. But I don't care. Kate Middleton gained weight? So? She still looks healthy to me. And even if she DID gain weight and became a little overweight, why must the world know? Who cares? It is her body and her life. I honestly could not care more about who lost and gained weight.
Maybe this is because of my experience with ED. The obsession with my body and weight made me realize that the world is too focussed on these things. What is saddening is that people (ex. the media) uses this stuff as 'news' and to attract our attention. Honestly, I am sick of seeing stories about celebrities and weight loss/gain. It is not news-worthy. And it is these stories that reinforce our soceity's beleifs about weight, food, and our bodies. For someone struggling with ED, this can make it worse. Everyone around them tries to say 'do not worry about your weight! No one cares!' - but then everywhere this person looks, everyone is talking about weight. This makes it hard to recover, to get better, and to seek help. For someone without ED - and for me in recovery - this just make me disgusted. Is our world so void of anything interesting that we have to write about people's bodies and their weights? Really? You have nothing better to talk about?
The focus on weight and bodies is just too much. Celebrities are often (not surprsingly) hit with eating disorders because of all the pressure to lose weight, to look good, etc. The media definitely does not help.
When someone gains weight, the news is all over the person. Why did they gain? Are they lacking control over themselves? Are they emotionally eating? Are they PREGANNT? If they lost weight, the same happens. Why did they lose? Do they have ED? HOW did they lose the weight? What is the golden secret? How can YOU lose weight just like they did? Who is their cook and trainer?! How much did it cost? How long did it take? How can you do this at home with the same resutls?!
I'm not saying our bodies are not important. They are. And we should take care of them. We should eat in moderation, happily and in a healthy. But the media does not need to let us know everytime a celebrity gains or loses weight. And this really does not matter. Bodies are not meant to be bought and sold on an open market. News should not tell us about who gained how much and how XXX lost this many pounds. It is simply not appropriate. And it is not healthy.
Here's a challenge for you. The next time you go out to a store or mall, look at the first magazine you see. What is the cover about? The stories inside? Is there talk of someone losing or gaining weight? Or something about how 'hot' or 'chubby' this person looks? I guarantee you will see something about this. It just goes to show that the world, unforuantely, has come to put so much attention on weight and our bodies that it fails to realize how deterimental this is.
Needless to say, this annoys the life out of me. The media (including magazines, radio, TV, or whatever) is so focussed on people's bodies and how they look. Beyonce lost weight and looks thin? So what? Why is that worthy of news? I mean, that is great for her. But I don't care. Kate Middleton gained weight? So? She still looks healthy to me. And even if she DID gain weight and became a little overweight, why must the world know? Who cares? It is her body and her life. I honestly could not care more about who lost and gained weight.
Maybe this is because of my experience with ED. The obsession with my body and weight made me realize that the world is too focussed on these things. What is saddening is that people (ex. the media) uses this stuff as 'news' and to attract our attention. Honestly, I am sick of seeing stories about celebrities and weight loss/gain. It is not news-worthy. And it is these stories that reinforce our soceity's beleifs about weight, food, and our bodies. For someone struggling with ED, this can make it worse. Everyone around them tries to say 'do not worry about your weight! No one cares!' - but then everywhere this person looks, everyone is talking about weight. This makes it hard to recover, to get better, and to seek help. For someone without ED - and for me in recovery - this just make me disgusted. Is our world so void of anything interesting that we have to write about people's bodies and their weights? Really? You have nothing better to talk about?
The focus on weight and bodies is just too much. Celebrities are often (not surprsingly) hit with eating disorders because of all the pressure to lose weight, to look good, etc. The media definitely does not help.
When someone gains weight, the news is all over the person. Why did they gain? Are they lacking control over themselves? Are they emotionally eating? Are they PREGANNT? If they lost weight, the same happens. Why did they lose? Do they have ED? HOW did they lose the weight? What is the golden secret? How can YOU lose weight just like they did? Who is their cook and trainer?! How much did it cost? How long did it take? How can you do this at home with the same resutls?!
I'm not saying our bodies are not important. They are. And we should take care of them. We should eat in moderation, happily and in a healthy. But the media does not need to let us know everytime a celebrity gains or loses weight. And this really does not matter. Bodies are not meant to be bought and sold on an open market. News should not tell us about who gained how much and how XXX lost this many pounds. It is simply not appropriate. And it is not healthy.
Here's a challenge for you. The next time you go out to a store or mall, look at the first magazine you see. What is the cover about? The stories inside? Is there talk of someone losing or gaining weight? Or something about how 'hot' or 'chubby' this person looks? I guarantee you will see something about this. It just goes to show that the world, unforuantely, has come to put so much attention on weight and our bodies that it fails to realize how deterimental this is.
