This constant pressure to be skinny puts girls under stress. Many not only feel self-conscious about their bodies but go as far as hurting themselves to try to meet these standards. These low self-esteems create eating disorders. Ninety-five percent of American women report disgust or disappointment with their bodies (Costin 53). Eighty percent of fourth grade girls report they are dieting, and 80% of eighth grade girls consider starving and binging acceptable weight loss strategies (Costin 1). Some girls are to the point where they are snorting cocaine in order to lose weight (Costin 53).


Girls feel an incredible amount of pressure from the media to be skinny. This affects them psychologically, altering their own perceptions about themselves. Girls develop a distorted sense of self, which can lead to an eating disorder. What they see when they look at themselves in the mirror is not what the rest of the world sees. They never see themselves as skinny enough. Changes that take place in the brain that result from lack of nutrients cause people to actually have trouble making rational and logical judgments (Medical). This is called the body dysmorphic disorder. Girls with eating disorders see a grossly distorted image of themselves rather than what they actually look like (Hartline).

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