(long rant: TLDR there are a plethora of websites that promote eating disorders and instruct our youth on how best to achieve them) As some of you know...Im doing my thesis on Body Image, specifically how to use early interventions in Elementary School to prevent body dissatisfaction and eating disorders later on. In my research, Ive come across a number of disturbing facts and statistics, but none as appalling as the one that just surfaced. Anyone ever hear of Pro-Ano and Pro-Mia websites? Well I hadnt either. These websites are, developed to actually encourage young women to become anorexic or bulimic. While a number of them are under the guise of support groups, they mainly, serve as bulletin boards where young women encourage each other to continue their obsession, showcasing disturbing photographs of anorexic women, hosting chat rooms where people can share their stories-including tips on how to lose more weight- and link the reader to other sites. I decided to go to one to investigate what they were like and I am halfway sorry I did- It is incredibly sad what some of these people are doing to themselves.Here, people can post queries such as, What are the best ways to stop eating? or Looking for a pro-Ana buddy, someone who can tell me I dont need to eat. Will do the same. As a profile signature on their chat contributions, each person has a countdown of numbers: They are in descending order and some are crossed out. This represents the persons weight change from their highest poundage. They often explain to the unaware viewer which was their highest, lowest, ideal and then, even more disturbing, their secret ideal. These tend to be around 70-80 lbs for a 54 or 55 individual. Here is a sample of a weight goal... Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels. SW: 133 GW1: 125 GW2: 120 GW3: 115 OLD UGW: 105 UGW: 95 (ACHIEVED!!!) ******* And now Phase Two...Underweight Division... New GW 1: 90 New GW 2: 85 New UGW: 80 * Zumba is Life!!!* I am feeling very sad at the world right now, knowing this is in existence...
Posted on: Fri, 27 Jun 2014 21:04:16 +0000