Body image is a critical issue in the contemporary world, which has become particularly prominent due to the popularization of visual mass media. Online blogs, television, and films all provide examples of perfect female and male bodies. When real people compare themselves to these ideals, they experience dissatisfaction with their body that results in body image issues. Although women are perceived to be the primary victims of body image issues, men often suffer from them to the same degree.
The ideals that trigger these issues are different for men and women. A perfect female body today is considered to be fit, with low body fat and a thin waist. To achieve this ideal, many women use unhealthy diets or fasting, as well as exhausting exercises. For men, the perfect body is just as difficult to achieve. Woods (2017) notes that the ideal male body image is inherently connected to society’s ideas of masculinity. Thus, men are expected to be muscular and have sharp facial features. Attempts to gain muscle lead some men to engage in exhausting training that damages their health, as well as use anabolic drugs to improve how their body looks.
Body image issues are dangerous not only for physical well-being but for mental health, too. A study by Jones (2001) showed that body dissatisfaction leads to eating disorders, depression, and poor self-esteem, thus impacting other areas of a person’s life. Although my self-esteem is normal, comparing my body and face to those considered ideal by society causes unpleasant thoughts and makes me want to change the way I look. Contemporary movements, such as body positivity, aim to improve the diversity of images in mass media. This will likely result in the rejection of modern body ideals, preventing body dissatisfaction and improving people’s well-being.
References
Jones, D. C. (2001). Social comparison and body image: Attractiveness comparisons to models and peers among adolescent girls and boys. Sex Roles, 45(9-10), 645-664.
Woods, J. T. (2017). Gendered lives: Communication, gender, and culture (13th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publication.