With New York’s Mercedes Benz fashion week just around the corner, my heart can’t help but pitter-patter with anticipation. Madison is hardly the fashion mecca of the US (though we are the headquarters of shopbop.com, holla), but a keen sense of personal style is not exclusive to those living on the coasts. While I openly admit to immediately shedding my pants upon arriving home from work and changing into less-than-trendy sweats, I still lust after 4” gladiator heels (despite my 6’ tall frame) and will discuss at length the genius of the Yohji Yamamoto & blogging prodigy Tavi.
However, I’m hesitant to start ogling the latest of next week’s runway photos on Style.com. Coming from a family with a history of eating disorders and having seen their devastating consequences first-hand, I can’t help but feel angered by the hostile environment our culture presents to those who suffer from an eating affliction.
As someone who plans to build a career in the field of marketing, I feel that the fashion industry’s continued use of grossly underweight models is a serious ethical issue that we can’t afford to ignore any longer. The vast majority of media outlets need to take a hard look at potential impact of the weight-obsessed messages they bombard us with, instilling the belief that “true happiness is only a pants size (or 10) away. I don’t claim (or believe) that the media causes eating disorders: research has shown that both genetic and socioeconomic factors play into their development. But, if genetics has loaded the gun, it doesn’t take much for the media to pull the trigger.
This is the first in a four part series examining the issues surrounding eating disorders and the media-at-large. The seriousness and difficultly of treating an eating disorder is often overlooked; I now wince when I hear that someone told Mary-Kate Olsen to “just eat a sandwich.” Eating disorders have the highest mortality rate of any mental illness, and anorexia’s mortality rate amongst women ages 15-24 is twelve times higher than all other causes of death combined.
Our idealization of “thin” is beginning to affect women at an alarmingly young age. In 1970, girls began to diet around age 14; by 1990, the age dropped to 8. By age 10, the equation thin=good=happy has already permeated the female psyche, as roughly half of girls report being happier when on a diet. Michelle Lelwica, author of The Religion of Thinness, points out that “…eighty percent of fourth-grade girls interviewed in the Chicago and San Francisco areas said they had already been on diets. Roughly the same percentage of women in the mid-fifties report a desire to be thinner. For many, this desire amounts to a life-long ambition.”
When you hear the word fashion, what associations come to mind; is “thin” part of your schematic map? Do you recall the age at which you first became body-conscious and experienced dissatisfaction with your weight, or can you honestly say that you’ve been happy with your physique?
—
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, you’re not alone. Reach out and ask for help, and know that a full recovery is possible.
