Body Image Today
The childhood toy captures body image, a prevalent subject within today’s society. Photo by Cora Kuhlenbeck
Body Image Today
Is there too much pressure on girls to have the “perfect body?” I was drawn to this topic as a 16-year-old girl myself. I have been through middle school and I am coming to my finishing years in high school, when how you look is a common thought that goes through a teenage girl’s mind. All over social media, you see the topic of body image being discussed. In today's society, girls are pressured to have the “perfect body,” whether that pressure is placed on them by society or the individuals themselves.
The pressure that celebrities and models receive is what is seen the most by the public eye, and almost all models and celebrities will openly talk about the pressure they have experienced. Demi Lovato, a singer and actress, has openly expressed her struggles with her body image throughout her life. In Demi’s documentary “Simply Complicated,” she says, "I felt the pressure increases when the fame started to creep into my life, I started to feel pressure to look a certain way, to sing music that people would like rather than sing music that I would like.” Body image controls one's mind, and in an interview, Demi talked about how body image controls her life. She is quoted saying, "Body image, what I'm going to eat next, what I wish I could be eating, what I wish I didn't eat. It's just constant. I get envious towards people that don't struggle with an eating disorder just because I feel like my life would be so much easier.”
Demi is just one of the many artists who have experienced pressure to look a certain way, and along with body image comes eating disorders. According to the South Carolina Department of Health, there are an estimated 8 million Americans with an eating disorder. These disorders are often brought on by the pressure to look a certain way. Many models are not only pressured by themselves but the companies that they are working for. Most models are required to eat a certain diet or maintain a certain weight in order to keep their job. In a study reposted by Cash News, 81% of models said they have a body mass index of less than 18.5, which is considered underweight. Seeing these underweight models all over the TV, internet, Instagram, and various other media outlets has a negative effect on all young women because it promotes the message that we should all be underweight because that's what our society has painted to be the “right look.”
Personally, I have seen the pressure that girls have to look a certain way. As I scroll through Instagram, I see thin girls or women showing off the newest trends for a clothing product. As I walk through the mall I see the same thing on the windows of clothing stores: women who are skinny. I remember once standing in the Kohl's dressing room and seeing a sign, “Need more women models!” Requirements were listed below the header, and they explained that you first must be a certain height, around 5 '5, if you were this height or a few inches taller, you were required to also be a certain weight. I thought this was just so bizarre. Being a pre-teen, I didn't understand why you couldn't be 5 '2. I was not surprised that they were in such a need for models because their requirements were so specific. These signs are devastating to a young girl’s mental health because it makes her wonder if she is not good enough because they don’t fit those requirements.
However, I have to admit that recently I have seen a change in many clothing companies. Many brands have begun to have women of all shapes and sizes model their clothing brands. Companies have begun to take steps in the right direction, although the pressure that has been put on women already has been engraved within us. The change that has been seen will definitely impact the future of women in a positive way, but for the current generation, we will have to continue to work on understanding that we cannot compare ourselves to others. Many girls wonder whether celebrities or girls just like them scroll through social media platforms and see thin, “perfectly” figured girls and aim to look just like those girls. Growing up in a generation where body image affects us so much, it is important for everyone to remember that everyone is different and that's okay.
