Eating Disorders

Dieting is almost a precondition for female gender in American society. It goes along with the sense of femininity as being rather than acting. Physical attractiveness determines social standing to a much larger extent for women than men; it shapes how women and men interact and even how women relate to themselves. The message is clear: A woman's body is not acceptable unless it fits a certain ideal; it must be deodorized, shaved, cantilevered, and, above all, slim. A recent survey of female students at a high school revealed that half judged themselves to be somewhat or very overweight, although they acknowledged that their parents and peers would see them as average or below normal weight. Further, 69% of these females had engaged in dieting behavior; over half had undertaken their first diet before age 15, and 14% identified themselves as chronic dieters. It is more than the fact that our cultural ideal is for women to be slim. There is an unexamined assumption that it is perfectly normal and appropriate to dictate the body size, shape, and proportions of women in a way that would never be applied to men. The presumed right to impose basically frivolous and trivial expectations on women is indicative of the low status of women in general. The fact that some females get into serious health problems in the process of adhering to these demands is a manifestation of the larger issue.

Cultural explanations of anorexia and bulimia have both strengths and weaknesses. The major weakness is that many members of the culture are exposed to the same messages, rewards, and pressures without developing an eating disorder. However, a socially idealized body image, economic gains through the propagation of slimness, and the social context of gender-appropriate behaviors all suggest cultural influences. Family influences, early life trauma, and peer influences all operate within a sociocultural context.

Clothing fashion probably plays a significant role in establishing idealized body image for women. Styles are often hyped for their purported ability to make women appear closer to the cultural ideal. For example, padded shoulders ostensibly lend height and, by contrast, make the waist appear small. In fact, one could argue that American society has yet to give up the body image captured by the corset. Idealized standards for body shape indicate that waists should be at least 10 inches smaller than hip measurements. Dimensions of mass produced clothes reflect the expectation that waists will be diminuitive. Underweight fashion models emphasize this cultural ideal. The marketing of clothes for large women is limited to "plus size" departments or specialty stores for "stout" women, which emphasize their deviance from the ideal.

Each year, several thousand individuals receive treatment for eating disorders. The associated behavior patterns have serious personal, social, and medical health consequences. Those who follow starvation eating patterns indicative of anorexia nervosa commonly lose 20% of their ideal weight and are often hospitalized due to the physical effects and risks of starvation. Those who follow a binge/purge cycle typically maintain a normal weight but engage in secret consumption of vast calories in short periods of time, hence the term bulimia, which literally means ox hunger. Anorexia and bulimia are somewhat overlapped, with some anorexics occasionally resorting to purging as a means of maintaining an emaciated body weight. Definitions now include beliefs, behaviors, and physical signs. Distorted attitudes about food and body image characterize belief systems of anorexics. Many anorexics perceive themselves as being pudgy or fat even though they appear emaciated to others.