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Patrick Moreno
Professor Noh
EN 114A
16 September 2015
Advertisements Cause Major Health Issues
The average person whether you go to school, go to work, go to the gym, or even just
stay at home all day will see an advertisement wherever that individual will look. Advertisements
show up in commercials on T.V., billboards on the sides of the road, posters in a store or mall, a
market, even personal electronic devices, the list goes on and on. It is almost impossible to go
somewhere or to do something without seeing an ad. These advertisements are used in many
different ways such as influencing what people will buy next, where that person will go to or
even create health issues. Almost every aspect of someones life will be influenced by an
advertisement. Due to the rapid advancement of technology advertisements are almost an
inescapable aspect of life. Advertisement companies create advertisements to influence a specific
genders opinion about themselves however, by portraying the average American citizen in the
ideal body is causing major health related issues for the particular gender being showcased in
the ad.
When choosing a place to perform my ethnography study I wanted to choose a place that
is heavily influenced on advertisements. I finally decided on a very popular clothing store,
Pacsun, in the Glendale Galleria. This location is highly influenced by advertisements for
clothing brands. It was impossible to look anywhere inside the store and not have a clear line of
sight of an advertisement. While I was in the store there were three advertisements that really

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stood out to me. The first one was one created by Diamond Supply Co. The second one was
created by Bullhead Denim Co. Finally, the third advertisement was created by Levis.
The Diamond Supply Co. advertisement is dealing with health issues of America in 2015.
The ad is showing the ideal body of a women with a flat stomach and skinny waist. By
creating advertisements that only show women having the ideal bodies are creating health
problems for most of the women in our population because only a small percentage of women fit
into the ideal category. An article written called, Perfect Body Image,(Springer) the author
illustrates how advertisements are creating health problems. She writes about how women today
try to fit the ideal category which is being 5 foot 2 inches and 120 pounds however, says
women of that stature are considered underweight through BMI testing which is proven to be
unhealthy. This is causing women in the society of 2015 to do everything they possibly to can
fall into this category. A womans drive to achieve this goal is causing them to have eating
disorders such as anorexia or bulimia, which Springer also talks about in her article. With the
ideal body always being showcased in ads it causes serious health problems for women not
only on a physical state but can also on a psychological level too.
The advertisement created by Bullhead Denim Co. showcases health problems women
can face due to seeing ideal bodies in ads similar to the first one however, Bullhead shows the
health problems psychologically instead of physically. In an article called, The Media and
Body Image,(Springer) the reader learns about how ads often fix the model to make them seem
skinnier than they actually are and to hide their flaws in their skin. In this picture the creator is
achieving the ideal body through photoshop. The viewer knows this because the company
name is photoshopped across the models showing that the image went through a photoshop

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process. By creating these inaccurate images of women the advertisement is trying to appeal to
their target audience however, by showing people that do not resemble their target audience
creates problems of accuracy. This idea of false body images is contributing to the widespread
increase of psychological issues such as feelings of inadequacy, depression, and anxiety for
women, which are major psychological problems people can deal with because they can lead to
more serious problems as stated by Springer in her article. Due to women always seeing pictures
of models portraying the ideal body of their gender causes women to have psychological
problems in their life however, advertisements do not just affect women, but they can affect men
as well.
Similarly to the first two ads the advertisement the third one, created by Levis, also
continues to focus on health issues as well. However, this ad is geared more for men instead of
focusing on women like the previous two. The Levis advertisement is showing an ideal body
of a man while skateboarding. The viewer can see this by seeing the toned, muscular arms, thin
body, and physical fitness level of the model by having the model perform a physically
challenging activity. In the article, Body Image Men,(Springer) the author demonstrates how
men believe their body image is more important to them as a man than body image is to a
woman. Also she sates that a man believes small aspects of themselves changing like hair loss or
gaining a little bit of wait will make them unappealing to women. This causes men to feel the
need to go to the gym in excess amounts or have surgeries performed on them such as pectoral
implants, hair transplants, or plastic surgery which can lead to health complications. Seeing these
images of the ideal body for a man causes health issues for men by showing men inaccurate

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images of how men look today. Just like women, men can have health problems created from
seeing advertisements.
In addition to physical problems created from seeing the ideal physique of a man in an
ad such as the one in the Levis advertisement, physiological issues can arise from these
inaccurate portrayals. The constant sight of seeing the ideal body of a man in advertisements
causes men to have serious physiological issues just like woman. These issues include depression
and eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia. According to the article, Body Image
Men,(Springer) the author also points out that 2.4 to 3.6 million men suffer from these eating
disorders due to advertisements like these and up to 20% of the people suffering from these
conditions can be killed. Due to seeing an ideal body of a man in an advertisement, men can
have a severe, negative outcomes psychologically just by the repetitive sight of these ideal
men.
Pacsun is shaped by advertisements because everywhere a person looks inside a Pacsun
clothing store that individual will see an advertisement for a clothing brand. Advertisements do
more than just helping an individual decide what to buy. These ads are creating a false and poor
representation of both genders. By having these false identities showcased major health issues
for the specific gender being portrayed in the particular ad being shown are occuring. As stated
in the above paragraphs these health issues range from physical issues such as, surgeries or
eating disorders, to psychological issues like depression, anxiety or inadequacy. There is not one
area in the store that does not have an ad. These advertisements are shaping how an individual of
a specific gender is suppose to view themselves and how that individual is suppose to look for
others forcing the individual to go against what is healthy for the human body.

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Average American citizens of a certain gender are being portrayed in their, ideal, body
which lead to an individual from a certain gender into major health problems. These
advertisements are being created to influence a specific gender on how they should appeal to the
opposite or same sex. The use of the ideal body is becoming more and more popular within
advertisements because of all the recent technological advancements. Anywhere a person may
look wether its a billboard on the side of the road, inside a gym, inside or market or even on T.V.
a person will see an advisement in any location. Advertisements are now a major part of
everyday life which people will have to grow to accept as an individual goes through life in our
society.

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Works Cited
Springer, Lisa. "Body Image Men." RSS 20. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.
Springer, Lisa. "The Media And Body Image." RSS 20. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.
Springer, Lisa. "Perfect Body Image." RSS 20. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.

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