Body Image and Body distortion

I was shocked to learn that around 5 million people suffer from eating disorders a year in America. 1 in 5 of women are said to have or have experienced an eating disorder in their lifetime. Why? Well when everywhere we turn we see ads, movies, and shows featuring the “perfect” size 2 image, no wonder we have such an issue. Seriously, no wonder the new market is full of diet books and ads.
Have you ever noticed that when you go in a store you see this mannequin featuring a gorgeous outfit? Of course we buy it hoping to replicate the look but when we get home it’s a complete disappointment. Well this might have to do with the fact that the average department store mannequin is 6 ft. tall and wears size 2-4. Now if you’re the cautious thrifty gal, like me, you probably try on the clothes at the store and it looks fabulous. So you take it home, excited to strut your find on a hot date or just to look cute when you’re out with your friends, but when you put it on before the big event it just looks hideous, a complete opposite of what it did in the store. Why? There is more trickery, department stores have a little something called the “skinny mirror”, and it distorts your image in the mirror to give the allusion of flawlessness.
All of these tricks are smart on the marketing end considering the want to be thin on the public end. But where did this want come from? In some countries fleshy is attractive, it signifies wealth and beauty. Marilyn Monroe, one of America’s sexiest icons, in fact wore a size 10; a size that would now days be considered unsightly. Isn’t that crazy!
Heart failure, brain damage, loss of hair, growth of facial hair, and an esophageal collapse; sound attractive? Well they are all possible outcomes of eating disorders, something that people are willing to risk in the name of mainstream “perfection”. Even print ads are retouched on a computer, that beautiful girl we see in the magazine is not perfect. If you are a Christian, then maybe you can understand this: God does not make junk, we are all made in his image, and to look in the mirror and say that you are hideous is to criticize his work. I hope that in reading this and learning how we are tricked and taunted to look scarily thin, maybe at least one person might change their mind about their self image. On another note, I know plenty of guys who love bigger gals, at least healthy looking girls.