Body image (anorexia)

I have been asked by Channel 4 to product a short documentary based around an issue that might have an
impact on young people’s lives. The topic I have chosen for my documentary is body image, specifically relating
to anorexia. My target audience would be 16 – 19 years old, this is my target audience because they are
typically the most likely age group to be affected by this issue. When creating this production I will need to
consider showing times, where the research is collected from and how it will be produced.

Hits on a website

There are many ways to find out how many hits/visitors a website has had (per month). Things such as website
traffic are important factors in determining things such as: how effective your website is, how well it is
performing, how many people find it useful and how many customers can it generate.

Programme ratings

I will need to consider what time my programme will be shown as it needs to appeal to 14-21 year olds. I need
to do this to ensure that I can get the highest ratings for the show as possible. To be able to have this result I
will need to do research into the times teenagers will most likely to be watching TV and the amount of time
they will be watching it for at a time. I can then plan my programme times according to these results.

An additional tool I will use for researching programme ratings is BARB (Broadcasters’ Audience Research
Board) which provides detailed figures and statistics relating to which channels are most popular and what
time most people will be watching TV.

http://www.barb.co.uk/viewing-data/weekly-viewing-summary/

This survey is carried out on a continuous basis and involves approximately 53,000 interviews per
annum. It is also a random probability meaning that everyone has an equal Chance of being selected
for the interview.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzjzSLqX0W4 - Anorexia Nervosa: Being Too Thin - An inside Story [BBC
FULL DOCUMENTARY] (1,068,783 views).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hddySXQVKeo - Fearne Cotton The Truth About Online Anorexia Full

Documentary 2009 (50,125 views).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFizuF7NtVA - S07E01 Supersize vs Superskinny Season 7 Episode One 1

(1,497,493 views).

Attitudes towards media products

Anorexia has become a common illness among young adult girls, this has mainly been due to influences in the
media. Many models and actresses are created to be an ‘aspirational’ size which is a photo shopped and
unrealistic representation of an average body. Anorexia nervosa is based around the insecurities women have
and start to compete to become a smaller size.

Typically the suffers of anorexia are women, this is because there is a constant message to women that they
need to have a slender figure. This message is represented through many forms of media such as
advertisement, TV, magazines and the internet. To understand how the image of women in the media has
changed I need to look through many magazines and advertisements over the decades to understand how
there has been a build-up of pressure on women over time to look attractive and slim.

‘Recent studies suggest that the general public lacks sufficient knowledge and information about eating
disorders, leading them to incorrect beliefs about those who have them1. A large survey was done on how
people regard individuals struggling with different types of mental illnesses including depression, substance
abuse, panic attacks, dementia, schizophrenia and eating disorders2. The findings suggest that eating
disorders are perceived by the general public as being self-inflicted, that these individuals should easily be able
to pull themselves together and that they have only themselves to blame for their illness. Participants in this
study held individuals with eating disorders responsible for their problems because of a belief that they have a
choice to engage or not engage in the behaviours. This study also found that the general public often regards
those with eating disorders as being difficult to communicate with, and that they were unable to empathize
with those who struggle with this illness. The results of this study suggest that the general public tends to
trivialize eating disorders, in contrast to other severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia.’ -
http://nedic.ca/sites/default/files/files/StigmatizationOfEatingDisorders.pdf

In the media today, typically in magazines and advertisement, women

are given an unrealistic body image to aim to gain. This is through
models who have been photo shopped to have flawless skin and
slender figures.

An example of this is Kim Kardashian’s Zoo magazine cover which

shows a clearly sexualized image of women as an unrealistic goal. It
also says ‘Hot 101’ making the suggestion that beauty is a competition
between all women and they have to come out on top, this leads to
eating disorders such as anorexia.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=GZfzKPG6&id=A5115631F91F2B5601850512279F
9382D7966464&thid=OIP.GZfzKPG6wb51eOCkqEp2ngDcEs&q=kim+kardashian+zoo+over&simid=6080543657
11368502&selectedIndex=2&ajaxhist=0
‘The excessive objectification of women in some parts of the media, reduces women entirely to sexual
commodities. It is imperative to attract consumers to want to buy the magazine so by vogue shooting the
images like this the magazine covers get more attention. Its not just this cover issue the majority of vogue
covers present similar principals.’ - http://laurafoley89.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/the-representation-of-women-
on-vogue.html

Responses to advertising

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=RIhPF2Da&id=A51B7CFFC75491A4B8917DBB1F4F
43CC341FAA45&thid=OIP.RIhPF2DaF2RSv_fYS2TxkQEsCD&q=are+you+beach+body+ready&simid=6080468795
78983816&selectedIndex=7&ajaxhist=0 – Dove response to ‘are you beach body ready?’ diet campaign

The image on the right is a response to the image on the left. The image on the left is an advert promoting
weight loss tablets for the summer. This resulting in many complaints from people who saw it and gave their
own rendition of how the advert should look. The fan responses showed many women stood in front of the
image in their own bikini saying ‘everyone is beach body ready’ or simply disagreeing with the image in a more
subtle way.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=PNDJoIyB&id=C08897435F32B5C30E7190EE04F5C
E4C65B95272&thid=OIP.PNDJoIyBs5dA6UugyiYrGAEsCd&q=are+you+beach+body+ready&simid=60799583390
7808759&selectedIndex=52&ajaxhist=0
https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=8y2vw%2fqv&id=0001F569570D419366E9296C14
DD5458B882F2D2&thid=OIP.8y2vw_qv5Qb2x_S4DvkfiAEeEs&q=are+you+beach+body+ready&simid=6080408
66649018306&selectedIndex=30&ajaxhist=0

Dove caught on to this negative advertisement so they promoted their own advert for their brand using the
same slogan, but with a more realistic representation of the average woman.

Questionnaires

To the left is a questionnaire that I have created

relating to anorexia and body image. I have handed it
out to 10 different people for them to fill out. I have
used all female participants as my research is only
based on the female body image.
Internet forums

When using internet forums to gain information on anorexia it would help me to understand which forums are
popular and see advice, people’s stories and some general knowledge around the subject.

http://www.myproana.com/ - mpa is the most popular anorexia discussion site

http://www.myproana.com/index.php/topic/463456-mpa-community-rules/ - mpa has rules for how users

should communicate with one another.

http://www.psychforums.com/anorexia-nervosa/ - each forum has an assigned moderator and users can learn
who the moderators of a particular forum is through the index page or under the forum name on each page.
The moderators and admins are volunteers and their job is to keep discussions safe wheile surrounding intense
topics.

Focus groups

‘Eating disorder therapy can be delivered in many formats and while always around eating disorders, the
therapy may focus on the way eating disorders affect relationships and family as well as patient-specific issues.
It is important to take into account the relationships and environment of the patient during therapy for eating
disorders, so the work the patient does is not undone by those around her or him.

•Psychotherapy: the most in-depth eating disorder therapy, delivered one-on-one with a therapist. Eating
disorder psychotherapy focuses on past life events (often traumas like abuse), personality issues, eating
triggers and initial causes of the eating disorder. Eating disorder psychotherapy is crucial in cases where the
patient has a history of trauma or where the eating disorder is particularly severe or longstanding.

•Family therapy: for dealing with the effects the eating disorder has had on a family. Family therapy for eating
disorders may include the parents of the patient, the children of the patient or other family members. It aims
to address the damage done by the eating disorder and put into place new, healthy ways of dealing with family
stress and creating a healthy family environment.

•Couples therapy: focuses on a couple. In couples therapy for eating disorders, each person may meet with
the therapist alone as well as together. This therapy aims to repair relationships and create new, healthy
interactions.

While some of these therapies, particularly eating disorder psychotherapy, can take time, this may be required
to get to the root cause of the eating disorder so the patient can fully recover from the eating disorder.’

Group therapy for eating disorders is a frequently used tool and can take a variety of forms and have a variety
of purposes.

Some types of group therapy for eating disorders includes:

•Professionally-led: these groups tend to be part of a formal eating disorder program. In this type of eating
disorder group therapy, an eating disorder professional, like a psychologist, will facilitate learning,
conversation and sharing. Typically the goal is both therapy and support.

•Peer-led: these groups, like Overeaters Anonymous, tend to focus on support rather than therapy. This type
of group therapy for eating disorders is best used once recovery has begun and not as an initial step to
recovery as in some cases, these groups can worsen some symptoms of eating disorders like bingeing and
purging.

•Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT): this is an evidence-based eating disorder therapy focused around
triggers, behaviors and consequences of the eating disorder. There is also focus on irrational and harmful
beliefs, such as believing they are fat when they are severely underweight. Note this can be delivered as group
therapy or in a one-on-one setting.
Eating disorder group therapy provides the advantage of interacting with others suffering from an eating
disorder. This camaraderie shows the patient they are not alone and group therapy for eating disorders may
provide additional insight as the patient sees their own lives mirrored in others.

- https://www.healthyplace.com/eating-disorders/eating-disorders-overview/eating-disorders-therapy-
psychotherapy-and-group-therapy

Age

Anorexia is typically diagnosed to young people between the ages of 15 to 20 years old. It is common for the
first signs of anorexia to appear following a stressful event during adolescence. People who are in their 20’s or
30’s may also develop anorexia however it is not common to see anorexia in people over the age of 40.

‘The average age of onset is 17. It is rare, but not unheard of, for children under the age of 10 to have the
condition. Older woman can have it as well, although it is usually diagnosed in the teens or twenties. Anorexic
statistics show that it is very rarely diagnosed after the age of 40, however it is not unheard of and there are
people that have a later onset of the disease. ‘

‘Anorexia is the third most common chronic illness among adolescents.’

‘80% of 13 year old girls have dieted.’

‘50% of girls between the ages of 13 and 15 believe they are overweight.’

- http://www.mirror-mirror.org/anorexia-statistics.htm

‘Children as young as six are suffering from eating disorders, a shocking study reveals. ‘

‘At any one time up to 90,000 Britons are being treated for eating disorders. Those between 14 and 25 are at
greatest risk of anorexia, bulimia and other conditions. ‘

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-444829/Anorexic-age-6.html

Gender

‘Anorexia statistics show that the disease mostly affects young women. Only about 10% of all sufferers are
male. Statistics on anorexia show that between 1 – 5% of all female adolescents and young women suffer from
anorexia.’

‘40 – 60% of high school girls diet.’

‘40% of 9 year old girls dieted.’

- http://www.mirror-mirror.org/anorexia-statistics.htm

‘A girl can become anorexic at any age. Usually around the time puberty hits is when it starts. If you are
worried about yourself or someone else get help immediately! Being anorexic can make you more attractive in
the beginning, but then you become too thin, and sick. Many medical problems can occur and if you or the
person you know doesn't help they could die. If you want to lose weight, eat right and work out. It comes off
slower, but its healthy and you will look great.’

-http://www.answers.com/Q/At_about_what_age_do_girls_become_anorexic

‘2 percent to 3 percent of males said they diet all the time or more than 10 times a year

5 percent to 14 percent of males reported deliberately vomiting after eating

12 percent to 21 percent had a history of binge eating’

- https://www.verywell.com/eating-disorders-in-men-2328808
Media preferences

http://www.myproana.com/index.php/topic/28890-eating-disorder-movies-tv-shows-and-documentaries/ -
lists of movies/documentaries/TV shows about eating disorders

Advertising placement

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=are+you+beach+body+ready&FORM=HDRSC2 – ‘are you beach body

ready?’ ad campaign for weight loss tablets.

This image shows how editors and go overboard trying

to edit the ‘perfect’ image for an advertisement. This
shows Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid doing an
advertisement for pets, however when you look at the
image you notice that their knees have been photo
shopped out of the image and in another picture Gigi
Hadid’s arm has clearly been slimmed down and looks
unrealistically thin. This proves that girls are being
given a fake image of celebrities because of all the
edited images.

http://imperdiblesestaticos.blogs.smoda.elpais.com/imperdibles/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/21110349/w-
magazine.jpg

Advertising effectiveness

‘Italy's advertising watchdog has banned an ad campaign for a fashion label showing a naked anorexic woman,
saying it breached its code of conduct. The image "commercially exploited" the illness, the advertising body
said. The image, bearing the words "No Anorexia", was first displayed during Milan Fashion Week in
September. It was shot by controversial Italian photographer Oliviero Toscani, who called the ban "censorship"
and said he was considering legal action. Mr Toscani - who created advertising campaigns for Italian fashion
label Benetton from 1982 to 2000 - once photographed a man dying of Aids for a Benetton campaign. ‘

‘Article 10 states that advertising must not offend "moral, civic and religious" beliefs and must "respect human
dignity in all its forms and expressions". "The photo is shocking for everyone, particularly those who are sick,
and has been set up for commercial ends," IAP President Giorgio Floridia told AFP news agency.’

- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7053725.stm

Conclusion

My conclusion shows that 60% of females answered yes when asked if they were on a diet while only 40% of
males said yes, this proves that body image is a lot more important to women which is causing them to go on
more diets.

My second set of results shows that 60% of women are also affected by the representation of beauty
standards in the media today which is making them self-conscious. This proves that the media does have an
effect on people’s views of themselves.