Pros And Cons Of Anorexia Nervosa

I remember the day my eight-year old sister came to me asking me how much a girl her age should weigh. At the time, I was only nine and thought her question was odd, but went along with my day. The next few months my sister began dieting and exercising and continued to reach and reset her weight goal. It quickly spiraled out of control and within weeks was diagnosed with anorexia and hospitalized. Looking back, it still astonishes me that someone that young could feel the need to lose weight and desire to reach unobtainable perfection. Anorexia Nervosa, while previously thought to only occur after puberty, can occur in younger girls. A recent study found that 10.6% of 4th grade girls and 7.3% of fifth grade girls fell into the anorexic …show more content…
Private high schools and colleges are becoming increasingly difficult to get into. These pressures trickle down into middle and elementary schools as kids are pushed to be in accelerated programs and constantly reach the top of their class. Even A’s are no longer good enough because one should be getting the A+ or a perfect 100%. One student reported, “working hard to get an A doesn’t mean anything now when the student next to you gets an A+” (Evans). Incorrect education around food and nutrition is causing additional issues. Girls are often taught that foods are either good or bad without understanding the nutritional significance. As a result, when young girls try to diet or lose weight they will cut out all fat or all carbs, which leads to disordered eating and potentially …show more content…
Throughout television and movies, thin females are seen as popular, desirable, and successful, while overweight females are seen as deviant and are often depicted as leading less satisfying lives. This alters how girls perceive themselves because all they see is that to be successful one has to thin. Childhood shows often depict the most desirable characters as thin white females with blond hair, which reinforces the Eurocentric thin ideal that girls then start to believe they need to reach. Girls are also watching television with older siblings and parents that may not be meant for young children. The adult shows young girls are watching push adult concerns of dieting and the thin body ideal. Additionally, advertisements during these television shows aren’t geared at children either. Advertisements on TV are a lot easier for young girls to understand because they typically are shot clips with visuals and words are being directly listened to. Young girls who may feel the message is aimed at them can interpret advertisements as a need for them to lose weight. Instead these messages perpetuated my media and even adult women themselves trickle down to young girls who begin having concerns about weight. They see that in older to be successful and accepted in society one needs to be thin so they should start sooner rather than later. Research indicates that more television watching increases thin body