For decades, America has been falling wholeheartedly into a culture that promotes eating disorders. Television programs and the media in general create a symbolic order wherein women are important, successful and visible only when subscribing to a certain physical appearance. And while issues with image are certainly a problem for those of all shapes and sizes, ages, and genders, the problem is severely and obviously polarized toward affecting young women. As of late, though, we haven’t been hearing much about eating disorders.
There seems to be a silent pact between media and industry that agrees to shy away from details of bulimic actresses or national death counts from anorexia and instead focuses on the ideal of a health-conscious society. America is now all about eating healthier, getting more exercise and living a better life. As laudable as these goals are, it is upsetting to see that a nationwide discussion of eating disorders has gotten lost among low carb potato chips and pricey abdominal machines.
It is dangerous indeed to discuss eating disorders when our consumer industry is now so heavily based upon selling products to promote diet and exercise, the fear being that if people concentrate upon ending eating disorders, they might by default become overly critical of weight loss programs and supplements. America’s weight problem is hardly a problem for the surge of businesses with products based upon consumers having bad body image.
We can tell ourselves that we are trying to work out and eat right in order to be healthy, but the truth remains that most of this nation is trying to be healthy in order to look good. A host of new
diets and health plans only mask the problem of both disease and health,
convincing the average American that eating disorders have been replaced with healthy living choices.
To clearly understand that this new diet mania is coming from an obsession with physical appearance rather than bodily well being, consider this fact: Heart disease is the number one killer of women in America, yet there is little campaigning to end heart problems and certainly none that is anywhere near the scale of our current nationwide promotion to end weight problems. We may see an occasional public service message directed toward women’s need to fight heart disease, but I guarantee that not a single commercial break or magazine issue can be found without at least one call to women to “get healthy” by improving their body.
Not to overlook the problem of eating disorders for men. Males too find themselves caught up in a slew of promotions for a good body. However, men have not been subjected to the same systemic assault of intense body-worship as women.
The message, primarily to women, is that keeping one’s body healthy and happy is only important when that body will be viewed by someone else. Heart disease is kind of important, but an extra roll around the stomach is actually life threatening. Women are learning to be healthy not for themselves, but for others. In a heterosexist society, this means that our national goal of beating obesity is becoming a sad repeat of women’s bodies being exploited for the viewing purposes of men.
Advertisers and producers in America can claim they are working against obesity in order to create a healthier nation, but in reality they are preying upon a nation of insecure women in order to sell more products. And for every company or campaign truly acting to promote healthier choices, there are ten businesses exploiting a new national ideal of healthiness as just another mechanism to convince young women that physical appearance should be valued above all else.
It cannot be denied that our nation does have a relatively high rate of dangerous obesity. However, much of this problem is based on national rather than individual choices. In a society built upon getting to the top through a go-go-go attitude, eating choices tend to be quick and refined. Likewise, with a longer work week and less vacation time than other countries, it is no wonder that Americans are less likely to take an hour a day to exercise, or even an extra 10 minutes to walk rather than drive to the grocery store.
A healthy nation and an eating disorder-free nation need not be mutually exclusive. In order to accomplish the goal of true health, our society must avert its priorities away from physical appearance as reigning value and promote healthiness while also recognizing the harms and prevalence of eating disorders. Almost any woman will tell you that dieting doesn’t stick because concentrating on food and weight only breeds resentment toward the body. As long as the women of our nation believe they must be skinny to feel attractive, the idea of being healthy to feel good will continue to get lost in the cycle of exploitation.

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