EATING DISORDERS AND THE MEDIA

A research paper by Vasudha Mathur

September 2013

ABSTRACT: Over the past few years, the rise in the prevalence of eating disorders
has raised an important question: What are the causes of eating disorders?
The objective of this project was to study the media as a cause of excessive dieting.
This study attempted to surmise the medias endorsement of the idea of slimness
that encourages eating disorders especially in their mild forms such as excessive
dieting.
I hypothesized that the frequency of media use (hours spent watching television, on
the internet or reading magazines) would positively correlate to incidents of dieting
over the past 6 months
BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT EATING DISORDES AND THE MEDIA
Eating disorders are conditions defined by abnormal eating habits that may involve
either insufficient or excessive food intake to the detriment of an individual's
physical and mental health. Bulimia nervosa and anorexia nervosa are the most
common forms of eating disorders.

Anorexia nervosa (AN): Characterized by refusal to maintain a healthy body

weight, an obsessive fear of gaining weight, and an unrealistic perception of
current body weight.
Bulimia nervosa (BN): Characterized by recurrent binge eating followed by
compensatory behaviors such as purging (self-induced vomiting, excessive
use of laxatives/diuretics, or excessive exercise). Fasting and over-exercising
may also be used as a method of purging following a binge. [1]

However, eating disorders, as popularly believed, are not necessarily predominantly

in the form of anorexia or bulimia. Young women and girls are at risk for excessive
dieting as it is viewed as the ideal solution to the problem of excessive weight,
even if the excess is all in the mind. [2]
The media, broadly defined as a form of mass communication, is an important
aspect of daily life. The media has been accused of promoting a culture of thinness
[4]
; thus creating an environment conducive to eating disorders. The time spent on
media increases the possibility of someone developing an eating disorder. [3]
I believe that the development of an eating disorder starts with comparison. All of us
have compared ourselves to celebrities, some more often than others. Our
comparisons are generally not based on wit, intelligence or good nature, but on their
appearance. Celebrities are expected to look good; its a part of their job. And when
we do not match up to the ideal set by them, we are at risk for low self-esteem and
low self-confidence. Past research has demonstrated that people feel negatively
about themselves after seeing television shows, music videos, movies, and images in
magazines that portray very thin "ideal women" and muscular "ideal men." [5][6]

WHY DID I CHOSE THIS TOPIC

Being a teenager in the 21st century, I have always had access to the Internet and
television. Like most of the others, I spent some of my free time watching TV or
surfing the Internet. On multiple occasions I have caught myself thinking I want to
look like that when I see a beautiful and slender model. Eating disorders spread
when teenage girls and young women engage in this thought process more than just
occasionally.
It wasnt until my recent visit to the United States of America for summer school that
I realized what extent to which some girls diet and exercise to remain skinny or get
skinny. It was rather alarming to find out that one of my friends there suffered from
an eating disorder. This personal experience ignited my curiosity about the thought
processes and psychological impact of eating disorders.
Through this study I hope to examine the correlation between spending time
watching TV, surfing the Internet or reading magazines and developing an eating
disorder, and perhaps finding alternate solutions and helping those who need help.
PROCEDURE
The procedures in this study were based on:
1. Wendy, S., Katherine A. H. (2004). Eating Disorders and the Role of the Media.
Can Child Adolescent Psychiatry Rev. 2004 February; 13(1): 1619.
2. Harrison, K., Cantor, J. (1997). The Relationship between Media Consumption
and Eating Disorders. Journal of Communication. Volume 47, Issue 1, pages
4067, March 1997
As a pilot, I investigated commonly held beliefs regarding eating disorders through a
survey. The questionnaire also focused on basic diet, exercise routine, time spent on
the Internet and watching TV, ideal body type of girls.
Participants: The participants in this study were females in the age group of 15-18
years. Despite a short questionnaire (average response time: 6 minutes), the
response rate was low (only 13 out of 30 questionnaires were filled out completely
and returned) potentially because of the nature of the questions. Anonymity was
ensured.

RESULT*

Average minutes of
Compensatory Excercise/BMI

Average Internet Use, Exercise and BMI

Average Weekly
Average Minutes of Compensatory Exercise
Internet Use
(Daily)
7-14 hours
60
14-21 hours
60
21-28hours
98

19.5
18.125
18

Average Internet Use, Exercise

and BMI
150
100
50
0

Average Minutes of
Compensatory Exercise
(Daily)
Average BMI

Number of Hours

Average Internet Use and Ideal Body Size Ratings

Average Weekly
Size 0
Size 6
Internet Use
7-14 hours
4.66
4.33
14-21 hours
5.2
4.2
21-28hours
6
5

Number of Hours of Internet

Use

Average BMI

Size 12
2
1.6
1

Average Internet Use and

Ideal Body Size Ratings
8
6
4

7-14 hours

14-21 hours

21-28hours
Size 0

Size 6
Size Ratings

Size 12

These results are based on raw data. No statistical analysis was performed on
the data collected.
*

Average TV Use, Exercise and BMI

Average Weekly TV Average Minutes of Compensatory Exercise
Average BMI
Use
(Daily)
0-7 hours
60
19.53
7-14 hours
60
18.5
14-21 hours
98
18

Average minutes of
Compensatory Excercise/BMI

Average TV Use, Exercise and

BMI
120
100
80
60
40
20
0

Average Minutes of
Compensatory
Exercise (Daily)
Average BMI
0-7 hours

7-14
14-21
hours
hours
Number of Hours

Number of Hours of Internet

Use

Average Internet Use and Ideal Body Size

Average Weekly TV
Size 0
Size 6
Use
0-7 hours
4.4
3.8
7-14 hours
5
4.75
14-21 hours
6
5

Size 12
1.8
1.5
1

Average Internet Use and

Ideal Body Size
8
6
4

0-7 hours

7-14 hours

14-21 hours
Size 0

Size 6
Size Ratings

Size 12

CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION

According to the trend seen in the data collected, the media has affected girls
between the ages of 15-28 years. The effects of the media are visible more
significantly in the area of exercise rather than dieting behaviors.
The increased number of hours spent exercising reduces their BMI, which was below
normal for a number of girls. The finding that most of the participants preferred a
size 0 rather than size 4 or size 12 provides support for influences of the media on
ideal body size. Since results do not clearly imply the development of eating
disorders among teenage girls due to media, the hypothesis cannot be accepted or
rejected with confidence. Although, it is apparent that in general, the media use
significantly predicted womens favor of personal thinness and dieting.
Given that the study compared the respondents self reports of current eating
behaviors and media consumption patterns without examining whether a
predisposition to eating disorders results more TV watching or visa versa, casual
inferences cannot be drawn with confidence from this study.
REFERENCES
[1] http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/eatingdisorder
[2] Class XI Psychology Textbook NCERT page 80
[3] http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/media-body-image-and-eating-disorders
[4] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2533817/
[5] http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/10/12/social-media-anorexia-[6]bulimiayoung-people_n_1962730.html
http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8528443.stm