Curtis,+Brittiney

=**Initial Proposal**= = = My social issue is on Anorexia Nervosa, the Eating Disorder. This complex disorder is one of the major causes for depression, anger, aggression and death. Another followed cause to Anorexia is distortion of bodily images to one’s self. The problem is woven into our culture and is trying getting people to stop engaging in this dangerous dieting method.A solution I have for this problem is for society to change and a generation of men and woman need to think in a mindset of valuing healthy woman. I don’t know how we would get society to change but it is possible for it to evolve. The purpose I have for writing this paper is to alert the readers/engagers to stop participating in harming their bodies, or if they know someone they can try and convince them that what they're doing is extremely dangerous. To do this paper, I'll use my research to guide me throughout. I need 42 note cards and those will help me to outline my research so I can easily locate it and use it in my paper. I'll do my research through books, databases, websites and interviews.
 * I DONT KNOW HOW TO UPOLAD A VIDEO TO WIKI, MY VIDEO IS ON MY USB, I CAN EMAIL YOU IT FOR A GRADE OR YOU CAN SAVE IT DURING CLASS... **

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ANOREXIA NERVOSA A Social Action Research Project

90 percent of Anorexia Nervosa sufferers are girls and woman, while 1 percent of American woman are diagnosed according to the American Psychiatric Association. Though, it’s natural for woman to want to look different or fix things on the body. When an obsession with food and weight takes over life and thoughts, Anorexia may be considered. Young adults are at risk when the media is most influential. Because of the fashion industry and its marketing methods, Anorexia Nervosa should be solved with a change of media perspectives showing healthy woman. Anorexia Nervosa is a severe disturbance of a person’s eating habits by using food as a source for working out emotional problems with the refusal to maintain a healthy body weight. Anorexia is most likely to affect middle to upper class woman with a European background usually between the ages of twelve to twenty five (Frazer). Though, Anorexia can occur at any age for any person. Kranz acknowledges that “Anorexia usually comes from a family that is assumed to be perfect; the two children with the two older parents. Anorexia is a multidimensional problem and it can’t be blamed on a single factor. Even though there would be fewer anorexics without the marketing images of skinny, unrealistic woman, the spoiled nature of young woman have more time than poor woman to worry about appearances. The underlying causes of anorexia are societal in nature, asserts Frazer. “Anorexia Nervosa is about the influence of the fashion industry’s role in shaping woman’s bodies, about woman hating their bodies… perhaps above all, Anorexia Nervosa is about the competition among woman for physical perfection” (Levenkron, pg. 13). Adolescent girls are always trying to establish an identity that may work for them. Levenkron goes on to propose that “A child who never developed a healthy dependence in early years has nowhere to go emotionally for fulfillment of a need to develop a sense of identity but to the larger culture’s messages to girl’s and woman”. These messages are about ridding oneself of unwanted fat and thinness. Adolescent girls, as I’ve stated, start to become devotees of these cultural messages. For example, glancing at any woman’s magazine will show models, television, and film stars with low body weight, and unrealistic body images that relay unrealistic messages to girls and woman. This is a life altering fascination for many girls. According to helpguide.org it’s an alternate route to feel powerful or “a way of distracting yourself” from the outside world. Counting calories becomes an obsession, helping to forget issues, and saying to food gives a powerful sense of control. These emerge from the emphasis of “thin is in” placed upon woman. Anorexia consists of two categories, Purging anorexia and Restricting anorexia. A purging anorexic means to vomit persistently after each meal or to take laxatives to speed up the metabolism. While restricting anorexia means to consume fewer calories than normal. For each type of anorexia there are four stages that Levenkron identifies in his book //The Anatomy of Anorexia//. Stage one is Achievement stage. Achievement stage is the beginning stage of the disease, consisting of diets that are more successful than regular dieters. Then being praised for the success, looks, and perseverance. An obsession forms and the world starts to feel increasingly unsafe as perfection is strived for. Stage two is the Security-Compulsive stage, which begins when the goal weight is transformed into a weight-loss per week goal. Exercise and measuring the body becomes a compulsion with a distorted body image. A fear for weight gain is developed, and feeling constantly hungry but denying food is also part of stage two. Another part of Security-compulsion is detaching from others and becomes self efficacy for thinness. The Assertive stage is stage three. By now, the anorexic is noticed by family or friends and the actions have been disapproved of. Food becomes a negotiation and bargain. The last stage is the Pseudo-Identity stage, now the anorexic is known and still disapproved by family and friends, and sometimes themselves. Treatment is usually sought out but death is sometimes a route. Anorexia rises from a combination of social and emotional factors. Our culture’s idealism of a perfect, thin body plays a powerful role. This is contributed from personal feelings and cultural influences. The most important cause of anorexia is personal feelings. Helpguide.org also states that “people with anorexia are perfectionists and overachievers. They’re the “good” child… who do what they’re told, excel in what they do, and focus on pleasing others. But while they appear to have it all, inside they’re helpless.” Someone with a low self-esteem can feel useless, valueless, and hate the way they look and do things. In return, they become rejected and pressured from society. Consequentially, an anorexic person is always looking to perfect themselves in any way. On the other hand, anorexia is caused from cultural influences. The fashion industry is a huge factor. For example Marilyn Monroe, back in the 50’s, she was one of America’s beloved model and actress. Woman wanted to be her, and still do. Though she was not a double zero, in fact was a size nine. Nowadays, that would be frowned upon and considered over weight. Our society is shaped through the media. Jessica Stam, a model, expressed “There are a lot of girls doing the shows who are very thin and frail, I don’t know if they are healthy or not, but I don’t think the frail, fragile look is very feminine, and I don’t think it’s attractive.” As anorexia develops the number on the scale increasingly preoccupies the person’s life. With anorexia habits are constantly hid, making warning signs to become harder to identify. A few of the many symptoms include: dramatic weight loss, denial of illness, diet pills, vomiting, excessive exercise, low self esteem, depression, and an obsession with food. Anorexia victims usually feel helpless, lost, and as perfectionists, they can feel powerless in different aspects of their lives. But they can control what they eat by allowing themselves to consume or not. They control the number on the scale (Helpguide). Calorie restrictions can have severe physical effects, as well as purging. If the human body doesn’t consume the correct nutrients to function correctly, it can slow down and consume itself. National Woman’s’ Health Information Center recognizes the physical complications that can occur. They include: mood swings, depression, weakness, low energy, low memory, yellow skin and teeth, brittle nails, bloating, constipation, gum damage, tooth decay, headaches, dizziness, and fainting. Anorexia affects your whole body though such as your brain, nerves, blood, hair, skin, bones, joints, and muscles. As you can see, anorexia can have a powerful hold on the bodily functions. On the surface it may seem ridiculous that any woman would want to inflict harm or torture with starvation, given a culture that marginalizes woman and the media’s bombardment that promotes unhealthy thinness, a degree of confusion is understandable. Anorexia, keep in mind, is still a deadly illness and can be reduced by changing the media methods that promote regular and healthy body weight rather than unrealistic thinness. The television commercials and magazine advertisements should have laws against advertising unhealthy bodies, especially when it’s an influence and puts the viewing public at a safety risk. AS I said before, anorexia can be deadly and reducing unhealthy advertisements can reduce the statistics against anorexia. As of right now, 24 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder (National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders). There needs to be an “immediate intervention by a professional” (Franz) in order to successfully get rid of anorexia within a person. The anorexic needs to be willing to solve their issue. Anxiety, low self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, and dieting cause a person to be anorexic. Preventing advertisements from glamorizing the risk factors is the perfect long term solution for ending the anorexia phenomenon. Short term solutions for anorexia include therapy, hospitalization, doctor and nutritionist visits to restore the lost body weight are effective strategies to solve anorexia. This social problem compels most with my life because someone I knew very well had a minor eating disorder and still from time to time struggles with the problems that come along with it. it’s a very had subject to touch upon because most people think its ridiculous and they can just deal with it. People without anorexia can’t fully understand why it occurs, it’s not to seek attention, or cause death upon. People with anorexia have needs that aren’t met in other aspects of life, they can’t control problems and other issues that occur but they can control what they eat and how much they weigh. Its about how they look most of all. Anorexic people are psychologically disabled from seeing the good things about themselves. Because of the fashion industry and its marketing methods, anorexia nervosa should be solved with a change of perspectives showing healthy woman in the media. The problem is woven into the fabric of our culture (Frazer). Society needs to value healthy woman instead of trying to change their flaws. They need to promote healthy woman who are contributing to society in healthier ways than extreme dieting, and being as thin as possible. An example from seventeen’s magazine of 1944 states that being over weight is a medical condition. This example shows unhealthy advertisement to teenaged girls. When in reality they should be telling them to eat healthier, and what to eat. All in all, anorexia nervosa is a compiling distortion on many woman’s thoughts and bodies that with a simple change of media can be reduced drastically. 

= **Works Cited ** = = = Spezialy, Thia. "Solutions for Eating Disorders - Anorexia Nervosa." //Solutions for Eating Disorders - Home//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2011. . Solutions for eating disorders for anorexia is solely about how anorexia can be solved. It bases on the symptoms and warning signs then goes on how each factor could be solved. **//(Brittiney, you can cut the URL (web address) to the main section at the beginning [|www.-.com], for example)//**
 * Web sources**

Frazer, Ron. "Anorexia Nervosa, Societal Causes and Solutions." //Alliswell.org//. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2011. . This article explains the many factors of Anorexia Nervosa. Starting with the four stages going into the societal damages, causes and solutions.

"NAMI | Anorexia Nervosa." //NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness - Mental Health Support, Education and Advocacy//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2011. . Mental Illnesses of anorexia Nervosa explains the cause and effect, about the weight and how people suffer from it.

Smith, Melinda, Sarah Kovatch, and Jeanne Segal. "Anorexia Nervosa: Signs, Symptoms, Causes, And Treatment." //Helpguide.org: Expert, ad-free articles help empower you with knowledge, support & hope.//. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2011. . Anorexia Nervosa: Signs, Symptoms, Causes, And Treatment is going into depth of defining Anorexia, how it occurs and how you can treat it.


 * Database**

ProQuest LLC. "At Issue: Anorexia." //http://sks.sirs.com//. ProQuest LLC, n.d. Web. 20 May 2011. <sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMA2228-0-5932&artno=0000307164&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=anorexia%20nervosa&title=At%20Issue%3A%20Anorexia&res=Y&ren=N&gov=N&lnk=N&ic=N>. This article provides an overview of Anorexia. Perspectives and analysis questions are also provided.

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 27.5pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 40pt; text-indent: -40pt;">Asian News International. "Eating Disorders Prevalent Among Adolescents: US Study." //http://sks.sirs.com//. N.p., 9 Mar. 2011. Web. 20 May 2011. <sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMA2228-0-5932&artno=0000312994&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=anorexia%20nervosa&title=Eating%20Disorders%20Prevalent%20Among%20Adolescents%3A%20US%20Study&res=Y&ren=N&gov=N&lnk=N&ic=N>. "A new US study has found that eating disorders are prevalent in the adolescent population and are associated with other psychiatric disorders, role impairment, and suicidality."

<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 27.5pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 40pt; text-indent: -40pt;">"Eating Disorders Timeline." //http://sks.sirs.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2011. <sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMA2228-0-5932&artno=0000262203&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=anorexia%20nervosa&title=Eating%20Disorders%20Timeline&res=Y&ren=N&gov=N&lnk=N&ic=N>. The American Psychiatric Association classifies eating disorders into three types of mental illness: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and eating disorders not otherwise specified. This article provides a timeline of important events in the history of eating disorders.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 27.5pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 40pt; text-indent: -40pt;">Erlanger, Ellan. //Eating disorders: A question and answer book about anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa//. MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA : Lerner <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 27.5pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 40pt; text-indent: -40pt;">Publishing Group, 1988. Print.
 * <span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 27.5pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 40pt; text-indent: -40pt;">Books **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 27.5pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 40pt; text-indent: -40pt;">Maloney, Michael, and Rachel Kranz. //Straight talk about eating disorders//. New York: Facts on File, 1991. Print.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 27.5pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 40pt; text-indent: -40pt;">Silverstein, Alvin Dr.. //So you think you're fat?//. Toronto: HarperCollins Publishers, 1991. Print. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Levenkron, Steven. //Anatomy of anorexia//. New York: W.W. Norton, 2000. Print. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Maloney, Michael, and Rachel Kranz. //Straight talk about eating disorders//. New York: Facts on File, 1991. Print.