Are women really that pressured to look thin these days?

Question

People tell me that women are constantly under attack by the media to look thinner and thinner. I don't really see it that way. I mean if that's true wouldn't men be also under attack look more muscular and fit by the media too? I guess people only see what they want to see. Selective vision maybe? If women were so pressured by the media to stay fit and healthy why are so many americans grossly overweight?

Answer 1

The whole premise is absurd to me. Television is in the business of selling advertising, and to do that they have to present something that's as appealing as they can make it. So the men and women have to be picked for maximum total appeal. (Personality, skills and looks.) So of course they're not going to look like the general population. They have to look better or you might change the channel.



You can't blame them for it. It's necessitated by the customers' preferences.

Answer 2

Yes, they are. Read the earlier answers. And it is "sexist" in that it is a male-dominated world and the skinny girls are the ones the power guys look for. But if you look at the guys that are on the media, newscasters, talk show hosts, the guys in so-called "reality" shows, none of them are overweight either, they also have to stay in acceptable shape.

And it is true that the wealthier can afford to eat healthy, the people you see in the media aren't hurting for money, the big stars have personal chefs and trainers to stay fit. The poorer people do live more on junk food and in a TV/computer games world, they do not get enough exercise. It IS a two-tiered society, the rich get richer, the poor get fatter.

Blessings on your Journey!

Answer 3

lets put it this way:

If you go up to a woman and call her chunky, do you think she'll laugh? NOOOOOOO!



Theres you're answer....



Im with you on the fact that women are UNDER ATTACK, but the natural desire is to be skinny and fit i guess. Im a strong kid, but kinda chubby, but id rather prefer being buff and having a 6 pack. Anyways, just wanted to point this out, did you know a poorer society gets more obese than a richer society (in america atleast)? The reason is because poor people can only afford low quality foods such as fastfood and other malnutritious foods, where as the high class might eat a lot, but have good food that isnt as full of crap and mutated chicken breasts. This is how things work these days in america. Eating habits change, peole are less active, and wanting to be fit just makes them remorseful and eat some more.



Anyways, this is just my thought, and purely intellectual. Im not a jack-wagon of a kid making dumb answers.



Hope this covers your question!!!

Answer 4

Yes, women are under a great deal of pressure in that direction. Men don't experience the same pressure because we live in a patriarchal society where women are the ones viewed as sex objects; nobody cares what men look like, because men are the ones whose opinions and desires matter. (That's why you end up with movies whose plotlines involve the unattractive schlub man-child hooking up with Gwyneth Paltrow.) As to why so many people are bigger, that's actually a very complex issue involving things like the cost of healthy vs. unhealthy food in terms of both money and preparation time, and the fact that fewer people have the skills to cook healthy food. Unhealthy stuff is cheap and readily available at fast-food restaurants and in microwaveable packages, so people who don't have the time or energy to cook because they're working two jobs (for minimum wage, so they can't afford decent vegetables anyway) can eat dinner with a minimum of fuss. Factor in the reality that, in some urban areas where lower-income people rely on public transportation, there aren't any real grocery stores close enough to be practical, so people end up getting all of their food from convenience stores or McDonalds, simply because that's what exists. That, and fitness programs (even the sorts of things one does at home) require time, energy, and money that a lot of people just don't have to spare.



But that doesn't stop the media from telling women there's something wrong with them if they don't look like supermodels. It doesn't cause women to look any more like supermodels; it just makes them feel bad about themselves.

Answer 5

Okay this is the problem,

America has to maintain food supply to its citizens with its large population and according the the people's demand..

by doing so they literally " blow up food products to maintain this".. and when i say blow up, i mean they put special chemicals in the food to make it appear better and bigger, like example an apple, You can plant an apple and it grows as it is but due to the demand they produce it by the masses by factorial work and by injected chemical stuff in the food to make the apple appear red , big and healthy so we'll buy it.. unfortunately that shyt is not good for us and can make us sick.. like the mcdonald organization, they do alot of shyt to the food just to make us like it which is not good for us, american food is primarily full of a load a shyt and we become addicted to it and so we buy it and demand it which is just making us really unhealthy and that's where overweight comes in..

_ As for the Skinny Female thing..

I for one really do see Young women being pressured into becoming skinny.. i mean seriously almost half the commercials on tv are advertising how someone can loose weight.. Tall skinny models are being flaunted in our faces by magazines.. Songs sung by artist we like are praising skinny women,, celebrities are worshipped for the skinny bodies and notice if you're a celebrity and your overweight the media bashes you terribly ( like jessica simpson).. this starts as a young age .. little girls are given barbie dolls that they look up soo much they want to look like her because she's portray as what beautiful means by the media, BLONDE AND SKINNY.... You rarely see people tlking about gaining weight in america... Females are pressured into looking thin because that's what People portray as beautiful and unfortunately if you are overweight. You are not seen as beautiful.. I dont see how you dont see this being flaunted all around us, i actually did a lesson in class on this and it really is a serious issue, girls are starving themselves to become skinny, becoming depressed and ashamed of their body all because of what the media SAYs..

Just take up a magazine and i guarantee you'll see skinny people being called " fabulous" victoria secret models are being photoshopped to look skinny.. Diet pills advertisement EVERYWHERE!!.. Open your eyes!!

Answer 6

it usually starts in teen years.the teens see these stick thin models in magazines modeling these cool outfits and they see singers like lady gaga,taylor swift and celebrities like angela jolie,selena gomez,paris hilton etc.they want to look like that and fit into clothes just like them.so they start gettigng into bulimia and anorexia.sometimes husbands/boyfriends don't help either because they needle their other half telling them they are to fat lose weight.it happens to men also.its obviously a select few though because i think there are alot more people out there sitting in front of computer,tv and eating alot of junk food gaining weight and looking unhealthy and fat.as you can see,the world is made up of different personalities.some people that are way over weight try dieting by winding up with bulimia/anorexia.that's not because of worrying about celebrities .its because they have let themselves go from sittin and eatin that all of a sudden they want the so called easy way out.schools are now working on teaching children good eating/exercising routines.they are trying to change the food preparation also.slowly but surely.the world in general just needs to get educated on how to eat and exercise to be healthy.they need to stop calling it a diet and call it establishing a healthy way of life by eating and exercising.they need start this at a young age at home .my mom taught me proper eating habits very young.i new my fruits and vegetables and i loved sports so she didn't have to pull my leg in that area.have to teach the young people to love themselves and to avoid the peer pressure of stick thin figures. p.s.poor people that have food stamps which now looks like a credit card can go buy fruits,vegetables,chicken and fish every month at the grocery store.as you can see,they dont have to live on junky food.this is all thanks to our american government.see,its not all that bad here in america after all,(O

Answer 7

Well, men in the media aren't as overwhelmingly fit as women are thin. Also, women are valued for their appearance (indicating fitness as mothers). Men are valued for their intellect and position (indicating fitness as protectors).



That being said, I'm being pressured by the military to look less thin. Somehow they've gotten this silly idea that I'm underweight...

Answer 8

YES!



I'm overweight and I'm losing weight. Not just because for my health, but it seems that if I want to have a relationship with someone who is sane, I have to look like a fecking stick figure. And that makes me angry.

Answer 9

Yes, women are pressured to look thin. I recommend taking a look at women in advertising. The images aren't realistic, for one thing. A lot of what you see is modified by computer art... women in advertising photos often have no pores in their skin or imperfections, and they are unrealistically thin. Cindy Crawford once said that she wished that she could look like Cindy Crawford (referring to computerized enhancements). Women are frequently dismembered with images focusing on breasts and legs (a form of dehumanizing a human being and objectifying them). Another form of objectifying women entails incorporating women's bodies into objects such as bottles of beer, kegs, and so on. For example...



http://jessicaknoop.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/1.png?w=299&h=224



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-NfrBgYIEQ



If you believe that I am biased, I encourage you and challenge you to find advertising to the contrary. Try to find pictures of women where they are not sexualized and objectified, where they are represented as intelligent human beings to be valued for their intellect and equal worth and dignity as human beings. Try to find pictures of women of realistic features who are represented in a positive way (and not as, say, a "before weight loss" representation or something of the sort).



Also, there has been a slight rise in objectifying men in advertising. As men more and more are represented unrealistically, we are finding a correlation in an increase in eating disorders among men.



As a final note, the Bible records Jesus as compassionate toward women, and they were even part of Christ's inner circle. Jesus regarded all people including women as people who are God's creation and people who He dearly loves. Advertising encourages people to strive for unattainable goals. God, on the other hand, knows that left on our own, we would have no hope of being perfect and so instead He calls upon us to rest in His arms as He carries us home.



Peace be with you.

Answer 10

a woman with meat on the bones is far more attractive then one who has chicken bones .just wait until those stick figures reach middle age and the calcium is not there to strengthen their bone structure

Answer 11

women are pressured to look thin because they read celeb magazines all the time, which have models etc.

Answer 12

Yes. Men are pressed as well.



I guess YOU are only seeing what you want to see.



Of course, everyone knows that all male models are gay, so...no one cares about emulating them.

Answer 13

well as a gay male yes we are pressured to look thin!

Answer 14

women are more prone to that kind of thing because men are typically sweatier and dirtier than a woman

Answer 15

apparently...