Eating disorders have become increasingly prevalent in recent times as more people than ever are struggling with them (Nagy et al.: 2021). Both male and female identified people each struggle with eating disorders in different ways, and eating disorders may affect how they perceive their body image. The difference between women and men and how eating disorders are treated differently between genders is important to evaluate as while males and females may have faced similar struggles, the way they struggle can differ. Girls tend to score much higher than boys in measures of drive for thinness, body dissatisfaction and bulimic symptoms (Bogaerts: 2019). Eating disorders tend to be gendered as well. Women are more likely to under-report their weight than men because women feel more societal pressure to conform to the standards society sets forth (Ambwani and Chmielewski: 2013). Gender differences also pertain to self-esteem, body image and eating attitudes. Although being overweight and obese were more commonly seen in adolescent boys, girls were more prone to have lower levels of self-esteem, poorer body images and experienced increased problems regarding eating behavior. (Nagy et al.: 2021). Though media may have certain effects on girls, there is little evidence to support the media-generated popular myth linking boys and eating disorders primarily to body image issues. (Halse, Levy, and Wright: 2016). Younger girls and women tend to be more body conscious than men and therefore have more severe eating disorders, lower self-esteem and body image issues (Nagy et al.: 2021).
Evaluating how body image and eating disorders are interconnected in young adolescent girls is central to my research, as this age group is the most susceptible to developing eating disorders due to society’s unrealistic body standards (Bravender: 2021). The pandemic has led to an increase in eating disorders due to lockdowns’, in a study of eating disorder admissions. Admissions significantly increased once the pandemic hit as teens had more time to be on social media and focus on their food intake (Bravender: 2021). Though media can increase ED-related behaviors, Internet-based group intervention can improve body image and eating problems in adolescent girls, helping with body dissatisfaction, extreme weight loss behavior, effect and perception of social media influences and depressive symptoms (Paxton: 2017). Adolescent girls may struggle with body image issues due social media, the effects of which have been amplified by the pandemic. While the pandemic may have ultimately worsened body perceptions among female adolescents, internet-based group intervention can act as an oasis to help young girls find support since they are spending an increased amount of time online due to the pandemic.
While evaluating how adolescent girls’ body image is intertwined with eating disorders, it is also relevant to look at older women in order to compare how their perception of their body has changed over time. 25-35 and 65-80 year old women were examined to compare how body image may differ by group. A drive for thinness was higher in those of the younger age group than the older age group and overall body dissatisfaction did not differ among age groups (Janowsky and Pruis: 2010). Older women who have suffered from eating disorders due to negative body perceptions earlier in life may suffer from long-term health outcomes: they appear more likely to smoke; to be underweight; to have had depression; to have had a later first birth; to have experienced bleeding or nausea during pregnancy; or to have had a miscarriage or induced abortion (Hall, O’Brien, Weinberg and Whelan: 2017). It is important that negative body image does not let eating disorders get the best of the younger generation, as it may lead to devastating future effects. (Hall, O’Brien, Weinberg and Whelan: 2017).