Body Image and Stereotypes in the Age of Social Media — Columbus Medical Association Blog

Ria Modak and Reeve Recor are both 10th graders at Dublin Jerome High School and active members of YAC.

The Social Effects of “Nouveau Barbies”

Chances are, you or some little girl you know has received or played with a Barbie at some point in their life. However, what most people fail to consider are the expectations even popular toys like this can place on little girls. Barbie’s demeanor would suggest a happy girl with glowing skin and a perfect life, but she could never exist. Barbie’s proportions are so unrealistic that, in the real world, they would kill her. Because of her tiny waist, she would only have space for about half a liver and a few inches of intestine. Furthermore, her waist-to-hip ratio is .56 meaning her waist is 56% of her hip measurement, with the average woman's waist being 80% of her hip measurement. Barbie stands tall atop children's size 3 feet and 6-inch ankles, meaning she would be forced to walk on all fours. Her neck is twice as long and 6 inches thicker than the average woman’s suggesting she would quite literally be incapable of lifting her head to beam that sparkling idealistic smile of hers.

Barbie is just one example of the unrealistic beauty expectations forced upon children at an early age. Now, with kids younger and younger having access to apps like Pinterest and TikTok, their new-age “barbies” are everywhere they look. Over 32% of TikTok users are between the ages of 10 and 19. These children begin to see that a thin white woman is still the female aesthetic ideal in today’s society. This can be seen on Pinterest where there is a lack of racially diverse and alternative body type representation, not because of the app, but because in society we still consider the thin white woman to be the overarching beauty standard. The fact is, this “nouveau Barbie” look of a tiny waist, slightly wider hips, and an overall slim and toned body is unachievable for nearly all girls. The people on Pinterest and Tiktok have either won the genetic lottery, are using angles and light to their advantage, or are using photoshop as a result of insecurity. Either way, these pictures set unrealistic expectations for girls which can greatly contribute to the development of unhealthy and unsustainable habits.

The Misconceptions of Eating Disorders

Eating disorders: conditions characterized by irregular or abnormal eating habits. While this is the reality of what an actual eating disorder encompasses, much of society has instilled other beliefs. Common misconceptions include blanket statements such as “only skinny people can have eating disorders” and “eating disorders are not real illnesses.” Alongside this flawed thinking comes flawed rationale, with a majority of society claiming that people with eating disorders can easily “fix” themselves if they simply force themselves to eat. According to anad.org, under six percent of people diagnosed with an eating disorder are simultaneously determined to be underweight. Not only does this undoubtedly refute the belief that eating disorders only affect those characterized as skinny, but it does so through a large margin. Furthermore, anad.org relays, “10, 200 deaths each year are the direct result of an eating disorder - that’s one death every 52 minutes.” Other sources such as therecoveryvillage.com states, “However, the mental health conditions that have the highest mortality rates are eating disorders.” To discredit the effects that eating disorders as a whole put onto much of society is a disservice to those who have lost their lives because of it. These blatant misconceptions come from a lack of knowledge, and frankly, it continues to feed into the negativity surrounding eating habits and standards in society.

Beauty standards have become extremely negative to the point where people are expected to fit a certain look, and with these standards follow those who put themselves through detrimental circumstances such as eating disorders to fit this look. “In a college campus survey, 91% of the women admitted to controlling their weight through dieting” (anad.org). If that is not concerning enough, “81% of 10 year old children are afraid of being fat” (anad.org). Not only are these standards feeding into adult women, but they are penetrating into the minds of children younger than teenagers. As a human, let alone a child,, no one should worry about fitting into what society feels is an acceptable body type. These unrealistic standards continue to push people to cause themselves harm, and as a society, it needs to be stopped. The ultimate first step to fixing this issue is to allow everyone to recognize the problem being brought about by the impractical standards that are continuously pushed onto society.

Sources: https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2013/04/45682/barbie-real-life-health-problems https://wallaroomedia.com/blog/social-media/tiktok-statistics/#:~:text=The%20percentage%20of%20U.S.%2Dbased,All%20data%20via%20Comscore. Eating Disorder Statistics | General & Diversity Stats | ANAD