Societies’s view on beauty is nothing shocking or new. For years the fashion, makeup, entertainment, and just about every other industry have been chocked full of the most aesthetically pleasing people imaginable. The consequences of this have become prevalent enough to push the importance of body positivity and mental health awareness into media, a subject generally respected and well received. Despite these efforts, it seems that eating disorders and depression and anxiety continue to become more and more common, especially in our youth. So what is being done wrong?
On one side we’re seeing strides in advertising and other industries. More diversity in general is being photographed, filmed, and given an important moment in the spotlight. A refreshing change from overweight or non conventionally attractive people being portrayed in ways that only amplify how unattractive they’re supposed to be . On the other hand we have ads for diet pills and supplements and magazines promising happiness from losing absurd amounts of weight very quickly. More focus needs to be put on exposing the often ignored dangers of diet culture.
Diet culture describes the most healthy and ideal body as a thin and toned one. There’s nothing wrong with following proper nutrition to achieve your fitness goals, but diet culture often leads to people using unhealthy measures. The average person is probably not affected by diet culture or what it promises, but people struggling with weight or mental illness are at risk of abusing aspects of it. It can very easily become an obsession with weight loss and not health. Extreme or unhealthy dieting can even be used as a coping mechanism. This culture pushed the notion that being thin is more important than being healthy. The concerning pills they sell wouldn’t still be on shelves if people weren’t buying them.
Perhaps the main cause of diet culture continuing to cause harm in society is lack of education. Being uneducated about the possible harm of a diet or even choosing to do it anyways shouldn’t happen in the first place. Support from friends and family is vital but not always available so the implications of improper nutritional intake and negative self image need to also to be talked about more in society and schools. Unfortunately seeing a plus size mannequin at target doesn’t fix the way way many people feel about themselves. As beauty is being redefined another industry still needs examination.
Hannah's Blog 