Body Shaming

Body shaming is one of the biggest problems in today’s generation. Society doesn't just find humor in
degrading a woman's body; they also find humor in degrading a man's body. Body shaming has become
a problem for both genders. People take their own insecurities and aim them at other people to make
themselves feel better about their own body. Body shaming, while common in both genders, is
especially harmful to women. Ariana Grande received a comment after being compared to Ariel Winter.
“Curves are sexy sticks aren't,” the comment said. Ariana then fought back basically saying how in no
way is this okay. Celebrities such as Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, and Jonah Hill have also been victims of
body shaming by many people throughout the Internet. Comments like these are why both guys and
girls have such low self-esteem. Body shaming is causing teens nowadays to be insecure.

Today’s generation does not see wrong in expressing their opinion. That is true, but shutting out anyone
with a different body type than them is not okay. “We live in a time when tabloids routinely question
whether female celebrities are pregnant and dissect their bikini bodies” (“It’s a Shame Body Shaming Is
Part of American Culture”). I read an article on the internet about body shaming that said between
one third and half of young girls fear becoming fat and engage in dieting or binge eating. It also said that
girls as young as five years old are worried about the way they look and their size, and one in four seven
year old girls have tried to lose weight at least once. Also, one third of young boys aged 8-12 are dieting
to lose weight. These statistics on both men and women indicate that body shaming has the power of
negative affects on someone.

People, with pure intentions of insulting someone, constantly throw around “her body is so flat,” and
“He’s fat, that makes him so ugly,” and “you need to lose weight.” Nobody chooses the body they have.
Everyone is born into that body without a choice. If someone is healthy then it should not matter what
they look like to anyone but their own.

What is a “perfect body”? Magazines put the spotlight on thin girls, and for the most part cancel out
girls that are not a size 0. This is to make a picture of the “perfect body”. That is not realistic. Society has
created this image that the “perfect body” is a body someone must have or he/she is shut out, meaning
people see their body negatively. "If people learn that everybody is human on the inside, than they will
realize that they are human on the outside and they will stop judging other people's bodies," freshman
Tyler T. said.

We should not be body shaming. We should be motivating, supporting, and encouraging each other.
Until everyone realizes that, body shaming will continue to be an issue. Body shaming is an issue that
will not be solved unless everyone learns how to accept their own body, and until magazines quit
perpetuating this myth of a perfect body.