Society s Affect On Body Image - 1096 Words

Thanh- Thao Duong Univ 111: Williams December 2, 2015 Unit 3 Essay Society’s affect on â€Å"Body Image† â€Å"Body image† can be defined as the way someone perceives their body and assumes that’s how others perceive them. The concept of body image can be seen as a great concern, from society’s affects through the media, social and peer pressure, to health issues and the actions taken due to body image shaming. Over time, the â€Å"ideal† body image has evolved into an idea that is simply unrealistic and unattainable. The standards for beauty has never been consistent and has always had constant changes. Early 1800’s, it was ideal for both men and women to be curvy and have somewhat of a heavy weight. Being plump was a sign that you were well off†¦show more content†¦2011). Statistics remain constant across gender, age, marital status and race. This shows that everyone is concerned with body image and that it is not gender based, both men and women are affected by each other’s perspect ive of the â€Å"ideal† body. Women are expected to be skinny, busty and fit, while men are expected to be lean and hunky. Not only does the media affect the way humans perceive themselves, but also social and peer pressures. The prevalence of anorexia is almost 4% in women between the ages of 15-24 and almost 2% in women between the ages of 25-34 (Costa-i-Font 2013). It is said that the likelihood for someone to have an eating disorder is greatly affected by a woman’s peers. It is believed that the more peers a woman has, the less likely she will be anorexic. This ties to the term â€Å"popularity†; in grade school, students are constantly looking up to the â€Å"popular† girl in school, wondering why they can not be as pretty as her or have as many friends as her. Teenagers these days spend most of their time being concerned about their body weight and the way they look. However, this is prevalent because of the pressures they feel from both family and friends. Although it is not purposely inflicted, hearing criticism from the people you love the most has the greatest affect on how a teenager views themselves. 81% of 10-year olds are already afraid of being fat, this is mainly tied to social and peer pressure (Mellin et al. 1991). Seeing a fat kid is not