Blurring Beauty: From Editing to Eating Disorders

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There are 24 million people in America that are suffering from eating disorders (American Journal of Psychiatry). From this statistic, a majority blame the media as it puts such a huge emphasis on true beauty, even though it is blurring the definition of true beauty through its use of Photoshop and other editing tools. In order to help control this uprising issue, even more restraints should be put on photo editing. Companies and corporations should also follow the lead of Aerie and other lines that have banned or drastically decreased retouching in their ad campaigns. Once the restrictions and falsified images have been cut out of television and magazines, the population of America as a whole will drastically increase in health and wellness. o

By definition, eating disorders qualify as 'any range of psychological disorders characterized by abnormal or disturbed eating habits’ (Mayo Clinic). Often times, the media, television, movies, and Hollywood, influence this pride of utter perfection through retouching. Photoshop can be used to completely change the appearance of a person though blurring, trimming, and color changing (Extropia.com). This allows the user to completely create a new picture and allow the photograph to look anyway they please. These false images often promote ‘skinny’ and ‘thin’. However this, standard photo editors set is often extremely unattainable. Supermodel Cindy Crawford stated “I wish I looked like Cindy Crawford.” (ABC News), and by this she means that even being described as perfect and one of the most flawless women in the world, she wasn’t. The editing on the photos made her appear that way. These impossible averages are often times what cause those with poor self esteem to turn to eating disorders;...

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...e current acceptance of Photoshop. Photo editing only projects influences of bodies that are almost impossibly unattainable. The only way to help those affected by this epidemic is to change how body image is valued at such a high standard, due to the picture retouching that transforms what that actual body being photograph appears to be. Better restrictions must be put on this technique to help save those suffering from eating disorders, along with those who might obtain them in the future if nothing changes. In short, the only way to revolutionize this issue is to make sure that Photoshop is abolished or at least severely minimized in usage. For those that are currently enduring eating disorders, counseling must continue to be offered in order to keep them healthy. A change needs to happen, and it's up to those being directly influenced to refuse the status quo.

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