What's All the Hate About?

Many women today feel like their bodies aren’t skinny enough. We as a society have become obsessed with looking fit and thin. One study reports that at age thirteen, 53% of American girls are “unhappy with their bodies.” This grows to 78% by the time girls reach seventeen. Girls even starve themselves to get a body that looks like Megan Fox’s, and guys do everything they can to bulk up. Why do we do this, and why can’t we stop?

A big part of this body image American’s have is the media. If you were to go to the store you would be bombarded with ads in magazines and ads all over the store showing “real” beauty. Nearly 50% of American girls in middle school and high school say they want to lose weight due to a picture they saw in a magazine. The makeup industry tells young women they can’t look good unless they wear a certain product or look a certain way. Even on TV programs there are hidden messages about body images. The “fat” girl is always depicted as a “loser” and as “having no friends, but in reality people that are larger have just as many friends as people that are average. Guys even worry about their body image. Going to the gym to bulk up is something I often hear guys saying.

Dove has a campaign to raise awareness and to show women that not everyone is what they appear to be. Many models aren’t even as thin as shown on billboards or magazines. There are people using photo shop to make those models look skinny and beautiful. Many women don’t understand this. The advertising business gets loads of money each year off of body image because men and women alike see the advertising and feel that they need the product in order to look good.

We need to be more accepting of people’s body’s. Instead of bashing others bodies we should be complimenting them and boosting their self confidence. There are hundreds of different body types and some women are just born with curves. No one is as skinny as ads show they are. Let’s make the world a better place by reminding everyone that they way they look is perfect.

By: Jessica Meyers