According to IDB News 17.7% of Medellin’s population suffer from eating disorders.

Society has created a strict stigma to define a woman’s body. The pressure exerted on them to obtain this ideal shape is crumbling their mental stability. Pressure on young girls has become crippling as they endure hours of exercise and deprive themselves of proper nutrition. Many Columbus School students consider it a crime to eat an ice cream cone at Crepes.

Social media promotes an unrealistic and unattainable body image. As a result teenagers slave to obtain what the fashion industry considers the ideal body, emulating famous models and starving themselves. Television promotes weight stigma by showing skinny women as superior, Victoria Secret model, because according to society this is the definition of perfect. Television and fashion present actresses and models as if all women should look like this. This is problematic.

At our school, girls are constantly comparing themselves with models and spending hours on their phones looking for weight loss strategies. It’s the community’s job to be supportive with women, they should understand it’s not their job to be perfect. There is no valid excuse for women to be judged and men are the main problem.  They are TOO picky and have the bar too high.

It’s ridiculous that teenagers develop disorders such as anorexia and bulimia due to the pressure society is exerting on them to obtain this ideal body. At The Columbus School, several cases have been reported. Students have lost weight in a short period of time, gotten sick in the process, and ended up needing medical treatment. Although some people dismiss the issue, claiming girls just aren’t aware of healthy eating habits, the truth is girls act like this with a clear goal in mind. Eating disorders are born from insecurity and result from the need to achieve quick results.

Society unjustly judges women and girls everywhere. To allow this behavior is to encourage it. In the cafeteria, girl’s food is substantially healthier than boys, reinforcing girls beliefs that their complexion is their finest attribute. Society needs to realize women are not dolls, fitness should be a choice not slavery.

In the end, society must evolve, stigmas and stereotypes need to be reconsidered and people can’t be defined based on their appearance. This social issue requires an immediate solution and the solution is tolerance. The prioritization of appearances must cease in order to achieve a healthier society. At The Columbus School the community must accept the fact that women are not defined on appearances. It’s everyone’s responsibility to reinforce positive behaviors and abolish this problem that’s consuming society.