Self Esteem Impacted by the Media
The first reason why Women’s Health Magazines negatively affect the body image and self-esteem of their readers is because they constantly promote losing weight to their audience. For example, see here the different headlines that encourage weight loss, and include different ways or tips to lose weight. Each of these magazines suggests to its readers that they need to lose weight. According to nationaleatingdisorders.org, Of American, elementary school girls who read magazines, 69% say that the pictures influence their concept of the ideal body shape. 47% say the pictures make them want to lose weight (Martin, 2010). This is simply from elementary school girls. Body image becomes an even larger issue as females go through puberty; it has been reported that during adolescence, issues with weight, fearing further weight gain, and being preoccupied with weight loss peak. (Striegel-Moore & Franko, 2002). Findings from another study indicate that 83% of teenage girls report reading fashion magazines for about 4.3 hours each week (Thompson & Heinberg, 1999). Teenage girls are naturally inclined to feel badly about their body, but being surrounded by magazines which continuously encourage weight loss and dieting tips can only make these issues...
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