Body images in media are the reason diet and exercise were created

Mass media are constantly criticized for influencing consumers towards negative body images and inflicting them with eating disorders.

However, media are creating positive influences in leading viewers to pursue healthier body images as well.

The healthy impact that media create is often overlooked. Conscientious celebrities are promoted, and people admire these figures. They inspire people to become more fit and to improve their body figures.

The media still have their negative sides, in which they portray overly skinny models as icons for women, and unnaturally muscular men honed with Photoshop. We should not be oblivious to this negative influence, though we should not be blaming media for the problems of body image in our country, because there is the positive side as well.

Healthy, fit celebrities are the ones most frequently depicted in media. It is true that runway models are often anorexic or bulimic, but are those the figures the ones that are featured in the most prominent forms of media? The majority of Americans do not watch fashion shows, or at least they do not watch them every day. There are much more popular forms of media that are not promoting these unhealthy models.

In the case of magazines, they are much more visible in daily life, and are therefore bigger influences. The celebrities featured on the cover of this medium, viewed in the supermarket or on your bedroom floor, are major role models.

The most popular magazines, such as Cosmopolitan, do not feature unnaturally underweight icons. For instance, in 2009, Cosmopolitan’s cover models included Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Alba, and Ashley Tisdale. These celebrities do not suffer from reported eating disorders, and they appear to be at normal weights.

These promoted celebrities work hard to maintain healthy bodies with whole foods and cardio exercise. For instance, Jessica Alba takes part in a 40-minute workout four times a week, according to Hearst Beauty and Fashion Network. Contrary to the common belief, media are doing the right thing by influencing body images. Showcasing these healthy celebrities gives people role models on the topics of diet and exercise.

Research does show that consumers develop negative perspectives on their own bodies after being exposed to the portrayed body image in media. A survey of college students in 2000 by Van den Bulk found a clear relationship between exposure to bodies idealized on television and lower body image confidence. The conclusion that these findings are negative is a narrow one, as it omits any positive impact of this perception shift.

Being critical of one’s body is a powerful reason to be proactive about one’s size. If an individual is overweight, they’re not going to be persuaded to lose weight if media are justifying this health issue by featuring overweight celebrities. A decreased confidence in one’s own weight is an inspiration to go to the gym. This type of influence should not be labeled as negative.

As with every message displayed by media, viewers should be careful when considering messages towards body images throughout the media. However, the assumption that the body images that media influence are fully negative is the type of ideal that is feeding the increasing obesity rates in America.