Beauty standards plague society. Largely attributed to media outputs such as magazines, T.V. advertisements, and the Internet, the meaning of what is “beautiful” has become distorted. Women who possess overly thin, starved body shapes and flawless faces and men whose muscles bulge from their too-tight t-shirts have involuntarily become the idealized representation of what is attractive.
Because of this unattainable, false representation of beauty, many teenagers resort to eating and exercising disorders and have low self-esteem due to their inability to possess these characteristics. According to kidshealth.org, “eating disorders are so common in America that 1 or 2 out of every 100 students will struggle with one. Each year, thousands of teens develop eating disorders, or problems with weight, eating, or body image.”
Although you may not suffer from an eating or exercising disorder, as an average American media consumer, you are inundated with unhealthy and unnatural images of beauty. It is important for everyone to become consciously aware of the unrealistic messages presented in images portrayed and be supportive and appreciative of your own and others’ physical uniqueness.
So what if, like most of today’s youth, you may not fit into a size 0 or 2 and your face isn’t free from acne, or your body doesn’t match up to the chiseled, muscled men characterized on television and depicted in magazine ads? You may begin to ask yourself, “How come I don’t look like that?”
In reality (a concept that largely escapes mass media today) the majority of women and men do not possess those physical characteristics. Airbrushing, a technique favored by photographers and directors alike, is the reason behind these seemingly perfect bodies.
As a teen, your body is maturing at a constant, developing rate that may not measure up to the bodies represented in the media. And that is okay. Your body is perfect the way it is. It is not flawed in any way, shape or form.
If you find yourself questioning the way you look, and putting yourself and your body down, here are some tips (borrowed from beinggirl.com/article/teenagers-body-image) to be above today’s beauty standards:
- Don’t judge your body parts individually. Try experiencing your body as a whole.
- Be aware of how much time you spend worrying about your looks—obsessing how much happier you’d be if you were taller, shorter, thinner, or if you had curlier hair, longer legs, a smaller nose—instead of doing things that you really enjoy.
- Don’t diet. Instead, learn about eating and exercise habits that will help you achieve a healthy body that’s comfortable for you and will serve you throughout your life
- Remember, don’t try to conform to the beauty ideals promoted by airbrushed, Photoshopped, flawless celebrities. Unless you have a professional stylist and makeup artist living in your home, you may never look exactly like the people you see on TV or in magazines. Be a trendsetter and find your own style. Give up glossy fashion magazines, TV, or surfing the Internet for a week. See if you feel differently about yourself.
