Two Examples of How Body Image Can Become Distorted and Related To Sociological Factors
Sociology of the body has become deeply affected by society and the way in which society views one another, which in turn results in the way in which we view ourselves. At one end of the spectrum there are eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia and on the other end there is growing epidemic of obesity especially in the US. Both ideals have increased widely over the last few decades due in part to growing mass media coverage in which there are norms within society and the always growing pressure to either look and feel a certain way.
- Anorexia, a disorder often defined as a “markedly reduced appetite or total aversion to food” (Definition of Anorexia, 2003). Often along with excessive exercise this is the one disorder that has led to the large increase in overly thin individuals. Along with anorexia, bulimia, “a disorder that can be defined as episodes of secretive excessive eating (binge-eating) followed by inappropriate methods of weight control, such as self-induced vomiting (purging), abuse of laxatives and diuretics, or excessive exercise” has also been an increased method used by individuals all over the world in the fight to remain sometimes deadly thin (Definition of Bulimia 2003). Both disorders are rooted in feelings of shame and desire to have control over one's body (Giddens,Duneier, Appelbaum, and Carr 2009). The individual feels inadequate and imperfect. They may have anxieties about how others perceive them which becomes a focus on feelings about their body. At that point, shedding weight becomes the means of making everything right in their world. The fact that we have a strong personal independence over our bodies in the past presents us with positive possibilities as well as new anxieties and problems (Giddnes,Duneier, Appelbaum, and Carr 2009).
- This idea is what sociologists call "socialization of nature", which is a phenomenon that used to be "natural", or given in nature, and have now become social and depend on our social decisions.
- Obesity, the state of being well above one's normal weight, has become the other end of the distorted ideas about body image (Definition of obesity, 2001). According to the Centers for Disease Control, roughly 60 percent of adult Americans are now over weight, and an estimated 6.5 percent of American children ages six to eleven along with 5 percent of ages twelve to nineteen are overweight (Giddens, Duneier, Appelbaum, and Carr 2009). Reasons thought to be behind obesity vary widely and are often debated. Some believe it has to do with the “population being a statistical artifact, some believe that childhood obesity is due to compositional factors, and then others believe that the problems are due to something called an "obesogenic environment." Sociologists are perplexed mostly in the persistence of negative attitudes towards overweight and obese individuals.
- From the sociological perspective the interactions that have been seen to show up between society and that of obese individuals is that persons of obesity are more likely to experience employment discrimination, discrimination by health care providers, and the daily experience of teasing, insult, and shame (Giddens, Duneier, Appelbaum, and Carr 2009).
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