Mass media affect

             The media is a powerful tool that influences the majority of the population. It has the largest impact, although, on teenage girls. All across the United States, millions of young girls see as many as three thousand ads each day, either in magazines, on billboards, or on television. These same adolescent girls are suffering with a range of problems, everywhere from low self-esteem to life threatening eating disorders. Many girls look at magazine images and ads that they see, and visualize the "perfect body image? however these pictures can be harmful as well as misleading. It is important to recognize women as smart individuals, who look past outer beauty, but rather inner beauty. Despite what teenage girls may intend or imply, the media will always have a large impact on their lives.
             Many girls believe that to be pretty means to be thin, however this is not the case. The average woman is 5?"" and 140 pounds, but the majority of the women that are in magazines are 5?0"" and 110 pounds. This means that the typical fashion model is 23% thinner then the average woman. The body type required being that thin is only common in 10% of the population. This is determined by genetics and no diet will ever allow the average size girl to be that thin. In order for a woman to be healthy, she should have at least 17% to 22% body fat. Store mannequins for example, would only have 10% body fat if they .
             were real women. Women believe that their physical appearance is extremely important. The majority of the pictures of women in magazines are computer enhanced. Many individual body parts are manipulated and don't actually appear that way in reality. Only 5% of women have model size body type and shape, although this 5% is brainwashing girls into believing it is the only acceptable figure. Everyone's body type and shape is unique, however the media portraying the "model perfect?body has caused girls to go to extremes to achieve this ideal body image.