Media negatively affects teenagers
Name : Alieka-Kaylyn Bailey-Johnson
Course code: HSP 3U/C
Teachers name: Mary Katherine De Giorgio
Due date: December 3rd, 2018
As seen through past evidence and data the thing that most teenagers obsess over and
spend most of their day on is media has a negative affect on teenagers as it promotes
unhealthy body image , creates higher statistics for violence, causes lower grade average in
education and puts a bad image in teenagers minds about what society should be like.
“Body image refers to the feelings people have about the way their bodies look.”(Body
Image. 2017). These feelings relate to how people believe others see them. From a
psychological perspective body image plays an important role in teenage society when it comes
to the media. It results in most females to feel the need to compare themselves to others
females which results in them becoming insecure about themselves. When teenagers are
introduced to media, it can affect their view on body image. Beauty and attractiveness are
showed in many popular films, television shows, and magazines. Teenagers are often the
subjects of the media’s sexual objectification, which reduces an individual’s value to physical
attractiveness.
In terms of mental health, studies have shown that everyone wants to feel accepted but
this crave for success can cause a higher risk of disorders and unhealthy eating habits.
Teenagers that don't like the way they look are at greater risk of developing mental health
issues such as anxiety, depression and bulimia . If they feel this way there is a chance that they
also suffer from low self-esteem issues and can have trouble concentrating on other important
things going on around them such as; school, work , family, etc… People with body
dissatisfaction have a great risk of developing anorexia or bulimia. People suffering from
anorexia starve themselves to achieve a lower body weight and people suffering from Bulimia
eat food and then vomit the food back out of their stomachs to avoid gaining weight. Both of
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these things can lead to some major health problems if it gets to a certain extent. Some people
will also engage in over exercising to attain a certain look that can lead to exhaustion and
injury. Several studies have came to the conclusion that “Exposure to media with body
dissatisfaction and eating disorders, particularly in women. Additionally, mass media depictions
are most likely to affect body image in teens and adolescents more than any other age
group.”(Body Image. 2017).
Because of the media children are becoming overweight and less physically active,
because of the time spent sitting down watching television, playing video games and using a
computer, these are all examples of unhealthy activities children and teenagers spend most of
their free time doing. Not only are they not active but also being exposed to unhealthy things.
While teenagers watch television there is many advertisements and televis...
