In today’s world of social media, being attractive and desirable is considered an important part of one’s personality. Images of perfect bodies, idealized facial features, and flawless skin are constantly displayed, creating unrealistic expectations of beauty. The “ideal” images of beauty that we see in the media every day represent an unattainable standard for many women. This unrealistic standard causes many women to feel dissatisfied with their bodies and to develop an unhealthy relationship with their self-image. This blog takes a critical look at body images in the media and the huge influence they have on young women’s body image.
Bodies in the Age of Photoshop and Beauty Filters
Social media, magazines and movies have a huge influence on the idea of the perfect body. Women are constantly confronted with unrealistic standards and unattainable benchmarks, leading to self-doubt and dissatisfaction with their own self-image. Often, young women struggle to copy the photoshopped images of models and celebrities, and we are given an unrealistic image. These media images can put tremendous pressure on women to conform to the media’s unrealistic standards of beauty. This can lead to feelings of inferiority, anxiety, and depression.
The Beauty Industry’s Message
We see time and time again how the media idealizes a certain body type for women, which can lead to problems for women who don’t conform. Women can be perfectly healthy and still not meet beauty standards. The messages of the beauty industry can lead to a harmful and unhealthy relationship with food and exercise. It also creates a culture of body shaming that women are constantly exposed to. These unhealthy habits can lead to extreme dieting, dangerous cosmetic procedures, or even eating disorders in the long run.
The standard of the masses
Social media plays an important role in promoting enhanced selfies and beauty standards. This can also lead to increased addiction to these platforms. Women feel pressured to present themselves in a certain light that conforms to social media standards, leading to increased pressure and derogatory feelings. The instant, real-time feedback can often be used as competition or benchmarking. This can lead to anxiety as women try to live up to a standard that does not exist.
The truth about women’s bodies
Women’s bodies come in all shapes and sizes, but the media doesn’t acknowledge this. They constantly project women with a certain body type and ignore the diversity of women’s bodies. We need to encourage in our writing not to have unrealistic expectations of women and to recognize diversity. Promoting a truthful portrayal of women’s bodies can lead to a more realistic and natural representation. Women need to be shown that beauty doesn’t have to look a certain way.
It is high time that we begin to actively analyze the media images that invade our minds. The negative effects of beauty standards are not only limited to the psyche and self-esteem, but also lead to an increase in harmful behaviors and eating disorders. It is our responsibility to shift the conversation from a narrow beauty standard to a diverse and inclusive view of what constitutes beauty. Instead of idealizing one body type, we must promote self-love, appreciation and acceptance of all body types. We must celebrate the beauty of diversity and encourage the media to portray women truthfully and diversely. Let’s celebrate our bodies for what they are and be proud of who we are.
