Nowadays, there is a great pressure for teenagers to "fit in" the established beauty patterns. In many ways teenagers are encourage to "follow the flow" in the way everyone looks. There are many factors that contribute to make teenagers do this, but the most important ones are the media, the society, and other teenagers.
The media, such as the television and magazines, show an image of the perfect body, which is the ideal for every teenager. Some commercials encourage girls to buy a certain product, showing the photograph of a beautiful model. They think that if they buy this product they will look prettier and accepted by other teenagers. Usually, the models that appear on magazine covers or advertisement are thin and pretty. Girls want to look like them, because they think that if they do they will be famous and successful, although it isn't like this. .
Boys spend hours in the gym building up their bodies, because they are afraid of being teased by their companions if they don't. To fit in a group, boys must do something wrong, which is considered as "cool", such as smoke or drink, and follow the other boys in the group.
It often happens, when girls buy a product, that it doesn't fit them nor look half as good on them as it does on the model advertising it. They think that something is wrong with their bodies and tend to try to modify it. Girls start strict diets that don't fulfill their energy and nutrient needs, and tend to over-exercise. Many teenagers do this just to attract the opposite sex or adapt to what other teenagers demand. It is then when teenagers are then affected by anorexia and bulimia problems.
The trend of modifying their bodies is more frequent in boys than in girls. Both, girls and boys feel that to "fit in" the group they must have the right look, although the attitude is also very important. Yet, the media influences girls rather than boys about the way their body should be.
