Eating Disorders: The Role Of Women In Advertising

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When watching television, one simply cannot avoid seeing ads. Ads are extremely influential as they mirror the society. And what is the most common thing shown in ads? The presence of women. Whether it is a movie, TV show or an ad, a women has to be there. Why? Women are portrayed as pieces of furniture. This is because women are considered to be sex symbols and all they have learned about ads is “sex sells.” What do they tell about women? They tell that the most important thing is to look good. Girls, from a very young age, are told that it is absolutely necessary to look sexy. When seven year-old girls are asked about their wish list, they reply by saying that they want to be thinner and look like Barbie dolls. Females are taught to diet and be dissatisfied with their bodies. Media plays a huge role in making women anorexic. Studies have shown that one in five women suffer from eating disorder. 44% of women who are average, in one study, said that they think they are overweight. 69% girls said that the magazine models influence their ideas of a perfect body. Nine out of ten participants in a diet program are females. Eating disorder is known to have affected 24 million Americans and 70 million worldwide. The main purpose of the ads is to sell the product and arouse demand for …show more content…

The ad agencies? The producers? No. It is us who are responsible. We watch the ads. We see women getting displayed in an inappropriate manner. We have the choice to not buy the product. But what do we do? We buy it. Instead we must act. We must complain to the companies expressing our thoughts on their ads. The companies will have no option but to abide by it since ads are made for people and if people are not happy, there is no point in making them. Secondly, we must educate children not to get easily manipulated by the ads. Or as George Orwell puts it, “In a time of universal deceit-telling the truth is a revolutionary

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