User:Maxcarrillo

Maxwell Carrillo 7/28/2006 Period 7 Language Arts

TV is a cause of Anorexia

TV a Cause of Anorexia

When you turn on your television what’s the first thing you usually see? Well, it’s probably a TV show starring someone famous and wafer thin actor or actress. Most teens today are in a phase where they are searching for place to fit in, or their own style. It also doesn’t really help that we live in a time where thin is in and fat is out. Sometimes that idolization can become an unhealthy obsession. First you have understood why people are anorexic and what they do. What is Anorexia? What is anorexia? Well, the scientific name for it is anorexia nervosa. Anorexic people usually are anorexic because they are either very vain or nervous about being obese. Anorexia is basically like starving yourself from food so you can get instant and immediate weight loss. It is fairly common in women in there early teenage years (13-18). People that are anorexic think that they are always overweight and try anything to get rid of the “excess weight” which can eventually lead to them staring to death. There are usually a couple of signs to tell if someone has it. •	Body weight is maintained at least 15 per cent below that expected for a person's height. •	It is self-induced weight loss caused by avoiding fattening foods and may involve taking excessive exercise, using laxatives or diuretics or self-induced vomiting. •	There is a strong, almost overwhelming fear of putting on weight, with sufferers preoccupied with the shape or size of their bodies. •	Rules are invented regarding how much food is allowed and how much exercise is needed after eating certain amounts of food. •	Those suffering from anorexia pursue a very low 'ideal' weight. •	The weight loss may cause hormonal disturbances and women with anorexia nervosa may stop having periods. What TV does? What example is TV setting? When you flip on the TV you might watch some MTV stars like Lindsey Lohan, Paris Hilton, and Nicole Richie. Those are the kind of stars that millions of teens look up to and want to look like them. Many Psychologists and doctors agree that anorexia is greatly influenced because of TV. Because of the amount of TV that teen’s watch it greatly influences there lives when a style is seen so many times. So think about copying styles is like that really, really old saying if your friends told you to jump of a bridge, would you? Ways Anorexia from Television could be reduced If television shows showed characters that where more size proportioned to real live people then maybe everyone wouldn’t be throwing up in there toilets and starving them selves to death. Also if more shows made a more positive image of teens that were overweight then teens that were overweight would feel better about them selves and stop starving them selves to look cool and fit in.

Anorexia...

When you walk down the street and you see a girl walking past you with bones jutting out of her shirt, black wispy hair and dry yellow skin you’ll probably think, “she’s anorexic”. So in the end is it better to look like a famous person or to be healthy and full with life. The next time you watch TV don’t. Walk out the door instead of being depressed and trying to make yourself throw up, get some exercise to lose weight.