Saturday, March 19, 2011
Teenager's and Today's Society
What is the one thing that teens of this decade are spending so much time worried about? The answer, fitting in, this decade has put such a pressure on teenagers, especially girls that they have to be the girl that they see in the magazines. They have to be super skinny, tan, and have the perfect makeup and hair job done. Teens are willing to do anything to reach this look to "fit in," even risk their own lives. Being a teenager myself who is constantly worried about my weight and how I look, I can feel where these girls are coming from, but what if it was "cool" to be a healthy weight, it was ok to be pale, or just look like yourself for the day?
I would just like to give you some numbers I found on these topics, the deadliest form of skin cancer increases 75 percent in people who tan in their teens and 20s. 19.3 percent of high school students have considered killing themselves, 14.5 high school students have made actual plans to kill themselves, and 19,000 high school students have planned there suicides during a major episode of depression. Also at the age of thirteen 53 percent of girls are unhappy with their body, this grows to 78 percent by the time they reach 17
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/03/25/health/main6333678.shtml
http://www.teensuicidestatistics.com/statistics-facts.html
http://depts.washington.edu/thmedia/view.cgi?section=bodyimage&page=fastfacts
In saying all this I would like to see a change in today's society. Where teenagers aren’t afraid to be themselves, teenager's are not judged on the way they look, and that everyone can just get along. The media can show what these celebrities look like in real life and just stop making the world out to be that you have to look like this in order to fit in. I believe this would solve alot of these problems listed above.
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Ok first of all, kudos on the great post. It has been several years since I was a teenager but I do remember there was peer pressure then too. Unfortunately for me it was the cool older kids smoking, partying, and yes tanning in the sun at the lake. I sometimes worry about the effects of all the sun I have absorbed as a younger person. Thing is most younger people do not realize that the only way to be comfortable with yourself, is to be comfortable with yourself. I hate that young people are lead to do bad things with their body such as starve themselves, tan too much, smoke, drink, etc. The saying I wish I had known then what I know now is true.
ReplyDeleteWe need more positive role models and society does need to change how it advertises, however we do not live in a perfect world and becoming comfortable with who we are and loving ourselves is something that is overcome. Once you achieve that then you are not likely to fall for the pressures of how you are suppose to look.