Research now shows a supermodel figure or the
"ideal" thin woman image reflected in magazine advertisements trigger
young women, obsessed with their own body image, to eat more.
Interestingly, those with a more balanced healthy body image tend to eat
less.
The study done in Australia is important in bringing out the point that
advertising not only affects the way we think but also our patterns of
eating behavior.
Fiona Monro, graduate student at the University of New South Wales,
explains the results of the study published in the November edition of the
journal, Eating Behaviors: "We would expect people who value the way they
look would be reminded by viewing the image and not eat."
"We're not sure why we found the reverse but possibly because of
stress...[women obsessed with their appearance] see the idealized image
and think about their own body so turn to food," she adds.
Monro says, "They might think 'what's the point, I'm never going to
look like that, I may as well
eat; or the image makes them think they're thinner than they are so they
eat more."
Sixty-eight female university students took part in the study: two
hours after their last meal, they were asked to prioritize the importance
of physical attractiveness, health and physical fitness to find out
whether they give importance to the way their body looks.
Monro and her team were studying the phenomenon of
"self-objectification," or the way people perceive themselves and their
bodies as an object to be valued for outward show as opposed to intrinsic
worth.
