Thinspirations websites, known as pro ana, glamorize the condition of anorexia, by posting diet tips, praising the “beauty” of bone thin girls and ridiculing fat people. the Thinspiration websites often picture well known celebrities, to provide inspiration to emulate them. A look at a random sampling of thinspirations showed Lindsay Lohan, Nicole Ritchie, Keira Knightley, Mary-Kate Olsen, Kate Bosworth, Ellen Pompeo, Allegra Versace, Victoria Beckham (Posh Spice), Angelina Jolie and Calista Flockhart.
Celebrities who were bashed for being too fat included Scarlett Johansson and Kate Moss. Lindsay “skinny “Lohan’s Emaciation website even showed pictures of Nicole Ritchie and saying she needed to lose a few pounds.
There were pictures of anonymous girls, embarrassingly self absorbed as they took pictures of themselves in their mirrors. They posed in a variety pf positions, sometimes shooting full body shots, more often focusing on one section of their body.
There are two high profile anorexics, that have recently admitted being in treatment for the condition. Allegra Versace, heiress to Gianni Versace’s fashion house had a statement issued abouit her condition in the past week. Olivia Newton- John’s daughter, Chloe Lattanzi, spoke up about her disease in Australia’s Woman’s Day Magazine.
One of the most high profile anorexia deaths was in 1983, when Karen Carpenter, the husky voiced singer of “The Carpenters” succumbed to the disease.
According to Colonial and Research news published by Psychiatric News (pn.psychiatryonline.org), Anorexia is a serious illness with a high death rate. Starvation is not always the cause of death. “The mortality rate of anorexia subjects in the study was close to 12 times that you would see in a similar age and gender population”, Dr Herzog told Psychiatric News. “So individuals continue to die from anorexia nervosa despite more information about is being available than in previous years. In other words, it continues to be a very serious illness.”
Starvation is not always the cause of death in anorexics. People with anorexia often die as a result of suicide and alcohol consumption. The study also found that not all subjects who died were severely underweight. Dr. Herzog stated, “In, fact a number were about normal weight, or even above normal weight. So just because one achieves normal weight in these subjects is not a reason to discontinue monitoring them.” Th e study was funded from grands form the National Institute of Mental Health, the Harvard Eating Disorders Center, Eli Lilly and Company and the Rubenstein Foundation.
Stanford University is conducting research on the effects of the “thinspiration” Web sites,encouraging eating disorders. According to the Stanford web site (news-service.stanford.edu/news)” research published in 2003 estimated that there were as many as 500 web sites advocating anorexia nervosa, but eating disorders specialists believe that the numbers have increased since that time. Many of the sites are designed and maintained by teens or young adults with eating disorders.
The Stanford website quoted Dr. Rebecka Peebles, MD as saying “These Web sites are founded on the mistaken belief that eating disorders are not a disease, but a way of life. They are well-designed and alluring, often with a gateway emphasizing the danger of the site that can be attractive to teens.
The Thinspiration websites aren’t all about glorifying starving to death, but also discuss the ambivalence and pain of the condition.
The literal meaning of the term “anorexia” is “having a lack of appetite. This is misleading because these people actually have a strong appetite, or a craving for food that they suppress. Anorexics diet to the point of starvation. The disorder is not defined by whether she is hungry, but by how much weight she has lost.
The person with disorder defines their self worth and self esteem by their body size and shape. Weight loss is equated with success, self discipline and control. Weight gain is seen as failure and loss of control of life.
Anorexia is diagnosed most often in industrialized societies. Thinness in these societies is equated with attractiveness. The problem usually begins in adolescence
Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder in which a person limits eating to a point that they weigh at least 15% less than their ideal weight. Although anorexia can occur in men, at least 90% of the cases are in your women. The disorder often occurs in teenage girls and rarely occurs after the age of 40. The main characteristic of anorexia is the refusal to maintain a normal body weight. Anorexics lose weight by restricting their food intake People with anorexia may start by limiting high fat foods and progress to an extremely restrictive diet. In addition to a limited intake of food, people with anorexia may employ other methods of weight loss, which can include vomiting, laxative abuse, diuretic abuse, insulin abuse, chew-spitting and excessive exercise.
People with anorexia fear being fat and may have a distorted view of themselves. They may see themselves as fat, in spite of what the scale says or what other people say to the contrary. People suffering from the disorder have a great fear of gaining weight. The fear does not lessen, even after a weight loss. Some people with anorexia have an understanding that they are thin, but are still fearful that parts of the bodies are fat. The areas of the body that anorexics often see as fat include th buttocks, hips, thighs and breasts. Individuals with this disorder frequently check their body size by weighing, measuring, pinching and looking at themselves in the mirror.
The restrictions that the person with anorexia imposes upon themselves takes a lot of control. This control may be exhibited in other areas of her life. Not only is her diet super restrictive, she may retreat from social contact and perform ritual behaviors.
The exact cause of anorexia nervosa is not known, but it is believed that many factors contribute to the condition. It is most often seen in Caucasian women who are high achievers with a goal oriented family. The condition has several symptoms including:
Weight loss of 15% or more below normal body weight
Excessive use of laxatives, enemas, diuretics
Self imposed low food intake
Absence, or cessation of menstruation
Skeletal muscle atrophy
Emaciation
Gastrointestinal problems
Loss of fatty tissue
Low blood pressure
Dental cavities
Skin blotchy or yellow
Denial
Medical complications can be severe and life threatening and ofter required help and intervention. The following consequences suggest severe disease. Hospitalization may be required:
Severe dehydration: risk of cardiovascular shock
Bradycaradia: slow heartbeat
Hypotension: low blood pressure
Hypothermia: lower body temperature, cold intolerance
Electrolyte imbalance
Cardiac arrhythmia
Kidney problems, renal failure
Severe malnutrition’
Thyroid gland deficiencies: cold intolerance, constipation
Bloating
Edema
Osteoporosis
Tooth erosion and decay
Seizures related to body fluid shifts
According to the National Institute of Health, the biggest treatment challenge is denial of the condition. People with anorexia ofter don’t recognize that their behavior is a problem, not a solution. Since people with anorexia deny that they have a problem, they do not get into treatment until the condition is fairly advanced. The goals of treatment is to restore normal body weight, eating habits and to resolve psychological issues. Hospitalization may be required in extreme cases. Treatment methods include: structured behavioral therapy, psychotherapy, anti depressant drug therapy. Severe, life-threatening malnutrition may require intravenous feeding.
Anorexia is a complicated condition. When our celebrity obsessed society holds ultra thin celebrities up as role models to be adored and worshiped, young girls try to emulate them, to the detriment of their own health, and possibly to their destruction. The Thinpiration web sites provide information about the disorder. Much of the information is incorrect, as the web sites are created by peers.
The Stanford University website quoted Dr. Peebles, “Medical professionals need to recognize the important role the Internet is playing in the education and mis-education of their patients. These Web sites offer peer group support, which can be used for good or for evil.”
Even though the medical community, and the anorexia sufferers themselves, are aware that this is a serious disease with deathly consequences, Thinspiration websites glorify and worship the false god of thinness.
People in society at large also play a role in this tragedy. As long as Hollywood and the fashion world glorify skinny actresses and models with fame and fat paychecks, young girls will try to emulate them. Every time a mother holds up a skinny role modelup to her daughter as an ideal, she is setting her up to an unrealistic standard.
As long as we buy fashions, movie tickets, dvd’s, videos, and magazines that worship the skinny, we are feeding the problem.
