Body Image is No Joke | Teen Ink

Body Image is No Joke

March 4, 2019
By tameaya123 BRONZE, Richmond, Virginia
tameaya123 BRONZE, Richmond, Virginia
1 article 0 photos 0 comments

According to the study of psychologists they found robust cross cultural evidence linking social media use to body image concerns for a drive to thinness. Social media is basically brainwashing teens to change their bodies. Some apps like Instagram or Snapchat are affecting teens body image. One study found that female college students on Facebook were more likely to link their self-worth to their looks.

Teens deal with body image issues every single day. It happens often in high school. 78% of teens said they have experienced personal body image issues one point of their lives.

I even see it happen at my school. Some teens at my school are being made fun of or called names because of what their bodies look like. The result of them being tortured everyday could cause them to commit suicide. If it goes too far i will step in and say something.

Body image issues are relevant because it’s one of the main things people in general worry about. A person’s body means everything to them so i understand why people may get something done to their body, but you can workout or change your diet. If someone’s body isn’t “fit” or “perfect” they can get bullied for it.


According to Pretty britty only 5% of American women naturally have the body type advertisements portray as ideal. Women spend all of their money to get their body to look ideal. According to People over 50 celebrities dealt with body image issues, and they fought through it by spending lots of money on plastic surgery. Are the models or celebrities we see in magazines really people to look up to in terms of body image?

According to The Body Image Center, 50% of women use unhealthy behaviors to control their weight, such as eating disorders. These include anorexia nervosa, and binging and purging disorder (meaning you eat a lot of food then you throw all of it up). 70% of 18-30 year old women don’t like their bodies.

This issue also affects men. According to The Body Image Center 37% of men who binge eat experience depression. 43% of men are dissatisfied with their body. Men with eating disorders suffer from anxiety, excessive exercise, depression, and substance disorders (A medical condition when people use one or more substances that lead to impairment or distress).

Body image issues causes low self esteem. Some characteristics of low self esteem are social withdrawal, anxiety, emotional turmoil, and being unable to accept compliments. When you have low self esteem, you suffer from a lot of things. Girls at age nine is when their self esteem start to peak whether it’s low or high self esteem.

It doesn’t matter what shape or size you are; you should always love your body. According to The Body Image Center, people as young as five are worried about being fat when they’re older. They worry about being fat more than getting cancer or having their family die. I hope what I’m telling you helps you with having  good self esteem, instead of getting plastic surgery or having an eating disorder, just work out and change your diet. 



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