“American elementary school girls who read magazines, 69% say that the pictures influence their concept of the ideal body shape. 47% say the pictures make them want to lose weight,” (National Eating Disorders Organization). With the increasing use of social media, there have been both positive and negative repercussions for humanity, especially in the area of health. Even though social media is not the only cause of eating disorders, we cannot deny that it has made individuals more prone to developing one. Photoshop makes models and actresses in the covers of magazines or Instagram look flawless. These images set up high, unrealistic standards of beauty, creating insecurities in girls and making them more vulnerable to suffer from eating disorders. Magazines and celebrities should stop using Photoshop in order to stop enhancing unhealthy eating practices. 

The idea of women having the perfect body has existed for a long time, but with the appearance of technology, it increased tremendously. With Photoshop, it has become almost impossible for women to be happy in their own skin. According to the Buchtelite,” The excessive use of Photoshop can be found in the majority of the photos we see… In a society that promotes a flawless physique and features as the “norm,” young girls and women often feel the pressure to conform to the unrealistic expectations promoted through digitally altered photos.” When girls start seeing these pictures from a young age, they don’t understand that all of these perfect images have been created by a computer. These types of photos lead girls to believe that beauty only exists in a specific body type, which is not achievable nor healthy for most people. Models and social media influencers are already really skinny and are made even smaller by photographers. Their waists are shrunk and their arms and legs become nothing but bone; every imperfection is erased completely. 

A lot of times girls will go to extremes to try and achieve the body that they see their favorite artists and social media influencers have. Each year, eating disorders become more common in girls ages 14-25. “Photoshop affects the number of eating diseases such as bulimia because in the past before there was social media before there was that kind of technology girls didn’t suffer from those illnesses as much, and now that there is the percentage is increasing exponentially,” Salome Beyer, 11th grade TCS student, said. In this era, women will go to extremes to look like what society has us believing is acceptable. A lot of women, especially teenagers, tend to believe that the best strategy to become like the pictures in the magazine covers is losing weight by cutting immense amounts of calories. This has to stop. If someone wants to lose weight, they should do it because of their health not because they see models and social media influencers with the “perfect” body. Also, if someone decides to lose weight it should be in a healthy way. For example, eating a more balanced diet and following an exercise plan that has been approved by a responsible physician. 

On the Bright Side, According to the lancer link,” A number of celebrities have taken a stand against Photoshop, Lorde, Beyonce, and Brad Pitt for example. Additionally, some companies have run ad campaigns with no editing done on their models.”This is a great idea because it creates an increase in the confidence and self-esteem of young women. Additionally, if more celebrities and companies continue with these campaigns, Photoshop use will decrease and people will feel comfortable in their own skin.

In the end, Photoshop affects the mental and physical health of young women and its use needs to be reduced, if not stopped completely. Magazines, movies and social media influencers should stop portraying these standards of what women have to look like. If more influential people stop using Photoshop on their pictures, then we will be able to explore who we truly are while accepting our flaws. A human is defined by more than what the eye can see, and social media has limited people’s ability to explore what lays beyond an individual’s skin.