The perception of health develops from a series of experiences, concepts, and standards which are created by society. Nowadays, the idea of a healthy body is mostly influenced by television and social media. Cultural norms and the level of an individual’s fitness education also contribute to the perception of a healthy body. The main issue with this is that many people mistakenly even health and the thinness of their bodies. The media enforces this idea by pushing the fact that obesity is the main risk factor for a number of illnesses, including cardiovascular diseases. While this is true, the constant promotion of extreme dieting for the sake of health damages the perception of body image.
Asian cultural norms and ideas on thinness provide a great example of the harmful influence of body perception. According to Zhu and Wu, “currently, Asian culture already agrees on “the thinner the better” for female stars, and most advertisements and programs regard thinness as a symbol of beauty” (Zhu & Wu, 2015, p. 148). Moreover, Zhang, Qian and Fu conducted a study (2018), where 2,023 female participants answered their questions about their ideal body image. The results of the survey showed, while “26.64% of the participants were already underweight, 30.55% wished to have a Body Mass Index (BMI) under 18.5” (Zhang, Qian, Fu, 2018), which is considered problematic.
Such dissatisfaction with the weight usually leads to an increased weight loss behavior. According to Netto et al. (2017), “for normal-weight adolescents who are obsessed with a slender body, they prefer extreme weight-loss methods with immediate effects rather than improving their eating and exercise habits” (p. 14661). For this reason, the idea that a thinner body makes a body healthier is incorrect. In other words, such perception of health should be changed. For instance, instead of promoting slimness as healthiness, the media can encourage balanced diet habits that help to build a strong body, not a thin one. After all, an idolized body shape is not necessarily a result of a healthy lifestyle.
References
Netto, B. D. M., Earthman, C. P., Farias, G., Masquio, D. C. L., Clemente, A. P. G., Peixoto, P.,… & Dâmaso, A. R. (2017). Eating patterns and food choice as determinant of weight loss and improvement of metabolic profile after RYGB. Nutrition, 33, 125-131.
Zhang, L., Qian, H., & Fu, H. (2018). To be thin but not healthy. The body-image dilemma may affect health among female university students in China. PloS one, 13(10).
Zhu, G. W., & Wu, Y. L. (2015). Study on the Influence of Model Presentation upon Consumer Haptic Perception Under Network Environment. China Soft Science, 2, 146-154.