The Weight Loss Obsession of Women

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The fulfillment that one feels whenever the weight on the scale has decreased or the guilt when the numbers increased or fluctuated is one of many symptoms of weight loss obsession. What is it about weight loss that makes a person feel so triumphant? It feels good to know you are one step closer to look like the models on the advertisements, when you are able to wear smaller sizes or when you get compliments that you look good because you lost all your baby fats and double chin. You could lose five pounds and the next thing you know, your next goal is to lose five more, and then five more, and five more and so on and so forth. How far are you willing to go to achieve the image of beauty?

There is an infinite amount of diet techniques out in the market and they all hold the promise of a better, healthier version of you. This trend is so popular nowadays, that it is everywhere, from advertisements, products, services and many more. It takes over one’s daily life. The obsession to meet the society’s expectation is dizzying; people are willing to devote themselves to these diets to have that ideal image of ideal beauty.

People spend so much money on weight loss programs, exercise equipment, diet drugs and surgery that the weight loss industry is now worth a whopping $60 billion. (http://www.ivandimitrijevic.com/why-it-is-the-perfect-time-to-invest-in-the-weight-loss-industry/)

The image of the ideal body is often emphasized on advertisements, the words; slim, thin, and sleek comes to mind when one catches a glimpse on the advertisements and most of the time these are the words they use to sell products. It influences the society persuasively (Jean Kilbourne, 2006, Slim Hopes and Obsessions). It doesn’t matter what country you are,...

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...ng disorders, New York, Guilford Press, 1994, Patricia Fallon, Melanie A. Katzman and Susan C. Wooley, p.8

• Feminist Perspectives of Eating disorders, New York, Guilford Press, 1994, Patricia Fallon, Melanie A. Katzman and Susan C. Wooley, p.390, 342

• http://www.eatingdisorders.org.au/eating-disorders/anorexia-nervosa/physical-effects

• http://www.ivandimitrijevic.com/why-it-is-the-perfect-time-to-invest-in-the-weight-loss-industry/)

• Onset of adolescent eating disorders: Population based on cohort study over 3 years, BMJ 1999; 318:756

• Slim Hopes and Obsessions, 2006, Jean Kilbourne

• The Obesity Myth: Why America’s Obsession with Weight is Hazardous to your Health, Ney York, Gotham Publishing, 2004, Paul F. Campos, p.87-88

• The Prevalence of Personality Disorders among Those with Eating Disorders, 2007, Randy A. Sansone, John L. Levitt, Lori A. Sansone

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