Determining Risk Factors of Eating Disorders
Determining risk factors, consequences, and protective measures
of Body Dissatisfaction and Eating Disorders
Determining risk factors, consequences, and protective measures
of Body Dissatisfaction and Eating Disorders
Body image is an individual’s perception of his or her own body in terms of sexual attractiveness. Human society has emphasized on beauty of the human body for a long time. However, an individual’s perception of their own body may differ from society’s standards, thus, causing body dissatisfaction. As a response to body dissatisfaction, every year, millions of people in the world succumb to potentially life threatening eating disorders. Eating disorders are a group of conditions characterized by abnormal eating habits that may involve excessive or insufficient food consumption, thus, affecting an individual’s physical and psychological health. Some common types of eating disorders include bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, binge eating, and obesity. This paper has explored six published articles that conducted research on various factors contributing to body dissatisfaction and eating disorders. The articles have examined the influence of society and media, gender and ethnic differences, development of depression, and some protective measures for body dissatisfaction and the development of eating disorders. In today’s society, both men and women are pressured to obtain an unrealistic body size and shape. This has plagued even children through toys such as Barbie and Ken. Thin-ideal internalization is a potential risk factor for eating and body image concerns (Thompson & Stice, 2001). Family, peers, and media have a tendency of reinforcing the idea of thinness and its benefits (Thompson &
of Body Dissatisfaction and Eating Disorders
Determining risk factors, consequences, and protective measures
of Body Dissatisfaction and Eating Disorders
Body image is an individual’s perception of his or her own body in terms of sexual attractiveness. Human society has emphasized on beauty of the human body for a long time. However, an individual’s perception of their own body may differ from society’s standards, thus, causing body dissatisfaction. As a response to body dissatisfaction, every year, millions of people in the world succumb to potentially life threatening eating disorders. Eating disorders are a group of conditions characterized by abnormal eating habits that may involve excessive or insufficient food consumption, thus, affecting an individual’s physical and psychological health. Some common types of eating disorders include bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, binge eating, and obesity. This paper has explored six published articles that conducted research on various factors contributing to body dissatisfaction and eating disorders. The articles have examined the influence of society and media, gender and ethnic differences, development of depression, and some protective measures for body dissatisfaction and the development of eating disorders. In today’s society, both men and women are pressured to obtain an unrealistic body size and shape. This has plagued even children through toys such as Barbie and Ken. Thin-ideal internalization is a potential risk factor for eating and body image concerns (Thompson & Stice, 2001). Family, peers, and media have a tendency of reinforcing the idea of thinness and its benefits (Thompson &
References: Botta, R. A. (2003). For your health? The relationship between magazine reading and adolescents’ body image and eating disturbances Peterson, R. D., Grippo, K. P., & Tantleff-Dunn, S. (2008). Empowerment and powerlessness: A closer look at the relationship between feminism, body image and eating disturbance Stice, E., Hayward, C., Cameron, R.P., Killen, J.D., & Taylor, B. (2000). Body-image and eating disturbances predict onset of depression among female adolescents: A longitudinal study. Thompson, J.K., & Stice, E. (2001). Thin-Ideal internalization: Mounting evidence for a new risk factor for body-image disturbance and eating pathology Tylka, T.L. (2004). The relation between body dissatisfaction and eating disorder symptomatology: An analysis of moderating variables White, M. A., & Grilo, C. M. (2005). Ethnic differences in the prediction of eating and body image disturbances among female adolescent psychiatric inpatients