Eating disorders and the media

There is some evidence that the media's portrayal of skinny models may play a part in teenage girls developing eating disorders. An Irish study of 3,031 children and 56 parents looked into this issue. It found that 71.4% of the children felt adversely affected by the media's portrayal of body weight and shape with 25.6% believing it to be far too thin. Those children who felt that the media had a bad effect on this issue were most likely to have disturbed attitudes towards food and disordered eating patterns. 94.7% of parents also thought that the media's portrayal of body shapes was too thin and 71.9% thought that their children had been affected by them.

McNicholas, Fiona ... [et al] - Eating concerns and media influences in an Irish adolescent context European Eating Disorders Review May-June 2009, 17(3), 208-213