Phreshly Squeezed

A lot of what I write often pertains to fashion, event coverage, social media or career development; there are issues, though, for which I am passionate about but do not speak about often. One of which is eating disorder prevention and promotion of body image. So when given an opportunity to write choose a topic for an essay in relation to my course, I find myself researching and reading more into the International Journal of Eating Disorders and other recent publications to further my understanding in such.

For my Latin American Cultures class, we were asked to write a 15 paged essay on any issue impacting Latin America. I opted to examine the influence of Western culture on both Hispanics in the US and in Latin America to determine as to whether or not the thin ideal was as trans-cultural as people have said it to be and if Hispanics are now at a greater risk of succumbing to to eating disorders given that they are the fastest growing minority in the US. In addition, I’ve analyzed possible prevention and reviewed diagnostics for the upcoming issue of DSM.

Be sure to read the essay, which is available after the jump.
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Before I was gung-ho on the idea of working in fashion public relations, I wanted to be a counselor specializing in eating disorders for adolescents. So, I would like to take the time this week to talk about eating disorders and body image problems given that it is National Eating Disorders Awareness Week.

Many state that the ideal female body is regarded as having large breasts, a small waist, broad hips, long legs, toned muscles, and light skin. From collected studies, many can find the media’s influence on our younger generation. In Sarah Grogan’s Body Image, it is noted that girls, as young as the age of five, demonstrate a preference for thinner figures, as well as calorie restriction as a means of weight loss. With characteristics such as these, it is no wonder that approximately ten million women each year (diagnosed, mind you) suffer from an eating disorder.

The biggest problem with body image is the failure to recognize the opposite sex’s ideal and realize who they are trying to appease. What I mean by this is that when given a figural rating scale (pictured above), men would often select a fuller figure than fellow women would pick. Therefore, one can conclude that women are not realizing that they are in fact trying to seek the approval of one another more so than they are with men. In which case, the comparisons are more strenuous given that they blanket their comparisons to one another with herself to his ideals.

What is also cause for alarm is that young women are able to justify to themselves that they do not have an eating disorder because their condition does not match the textbook description of anorexia or bulimia nervosa, or binge eating disorder. In which case, many fall under the little known category EDNOS (eating disorder not otherwise specified) where not all symptoms are matched but behaviors are enough to classify a person as having a problem warranting attention.

Often, there is an underlying issue to an eating disorder; many do not have control over their actual lives and resort to food as a means of exerting control in a way that they are sure to “win.” Such is often why we see eating disorders paired with other issues, such as depression or a troubled home life.

And although many say that the fashion industry is to blame, there have been improvements made and hopes to gain more traction in the movement towards a healthier body image. A week prior to New York Fashion Week, the CFDA held a panel discussion entitled “The Beauty of Health: Resizing the Sample Size,” in which it was agreed upon there is a need for change; however, it must be a collective effort by the whole industry and just not by a select few. And from when the Brazilian girl had collapsed and died several years ago, we also have to note how the attitude toward thinness has vastly changed. Where many had before perceived the average American size of fourteen to be negative, many are beginning to embrace it, especially with the launch of several plus-size lines (including the premiere of Project Runway Canada Jessica Biffi’s plus-sized collection) and voice their opinions (such as with the heavily digitally edited Ralph Lauren advertisements).

The key here is to provide support. If you believe someone you know has an eating disorder, do not be afraid to contact a medical personnel or someone that can give you access to such resources.

Ralph Lauren flubs again with model Valentina Zelyaeva

For more information, check out the National Eating Disorders Awareness website

Logo courtesy of NEDA, figural rating scale courtesy of Nature.com, another Ralph Lauren flub by news.com.au

If my resolutions included no more procrastinating, I would have to say that I completely failed that idea. I’ve been thinking a lot about this past year and the idea of resolutions, and I finally managed to bundle my my thoughts together to write a post on 2009.

At first, I didn’t think much of the past year in terms of significance. After all, on the surface, there was no monumental accomplishment of any kind – I only just started university. But when I started going through my pictures on Facebook and on my computer, I realized how different things are now from when I rung in the previous year at a friend’s house.

I came to college with the aspirations of becoming a psychology major, going to graduate school (wait for it…), and becoming a counselor (now there’s the punchline). I dabbled in fashion for fun and worked in graphic design for some pocket money. And as much as I don’t like to admit it, France changed a lot of my views. The amount of culture that existed and the multitude of things that were possible to do (e.g. fashion shows for a couple of euros and chocolate dresses for public viewing) were astounding. Working for a start-up fashion line is/was great for me, but aside from that, my exposure to the fashion world was so limited.

By opening myself up to new experiences, I allowed myself to doubt the goals that I had set before college and to explore new possibilities. Reinforced by what I was seeing in this foreign country, I was able to entertain new paths, as well as better direct my goals to meet the activities that I found myself to be pursuing.

And I suppose this is the point where I started caring a lot about my appearance and presentation towards others. I grew up with a lot of boys; of the ~45 kids I grew up with, about 12 were girls. The need for caring how I dressed never really existed because of that (and my school wasn’t hottie central anyway). But when I became more confident in knowing what I wanted to do, I also became more sure of myself and could take hold of how I wanted others to see me, which included my painful struggle with trying to wear contacts (I really did tack on an extra half hour to get ready for the first month that I started wearing them).

Aside from experiencing cultural things, my life in the career aspect boomed. I started this blog up again and gave it direction to make myself more visible, cranked up the social media, was offered an internship (coincidentally, it was because they found my blog off a network) before I even moved to New York City, was sought after by Like.com, attended New York Fashion Week, had a media pass for LG Fashion Week, was invited to various events, and met designers.

Let's compare me from high school to me in 2009: I'd like to think there's at least a bit of improvement.

2009 was a year where a lot happened, but was more so a year of trial and error for me. This next year only has good things to come. I don’t have a set of resolutions; rather, I have a list of goals that pertain to my personal life, health, and career. It makes sure that I strive to lead a balanced life, and by seeing them posted on my desk everyday, I won’t forget what I want to achieve with the deadlines that I have set.

For more on my view on goals and resolutions, check out my entry at The Ability Project.