Vocabulary,+search+terms


 * Anorexia Nervosa-** An eating disorder in which the affected individual obsesses about weight and food. They attempt to maintain a body weight that is unhealthily low. Most often, they do this by either starving themselves or undertaking excessive amounts of exercise.

**Bingeing-** A part of the bulimia condition. This is the first part of the cycle, in which the individual takes in an excessively large amount of calories. This is then followed by the purging portion of the cycle (see purging).

**Body Image-** How one feels about their perceived appearance. It is fluid; changing during everyday social interactions. It differs among cultures, and even during the individual’s life. It is especially important, however, during adolescence.

**Bulimia Nervosa-** Another eating disorder in which the individual obsesses over body weight and shape. In this disorder, the individual follows repeated cycles of bingeing and purging, often via vomiting or exercise.


 * Eating Disorders-** Disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, where the individual has an unhealthy preoccupation with food and body weight. Over time, this damages the systems of the body, and can lead to death.


 * Fat Talk Free Zone**- A term coined by Dr. Robyn Smith as a tip for parents to help their children, especially daughters form a healthy body image. The home is an area where no family member can talk about their body weight or put down another due to their body weight.


 * Media Literacy**- The capability of an individual to analyze and evaluate media it is different genres. It the case of females and body image issues, it means being aware that the women used in media may carry an unrealistic ideal.


 * Puberty-** The biological transformation of children from children to adults. It typically begins between ages 8 to 13 for girls and ages 9 to 14 for boys. Its typical duration is around 3 to 4 years. This is often when most females develop body image issues, though it can start earlier.


 * Purging-** The second part of the bulimic cycle. In this portion, the individual attempts to rid their body of the large amount of calories they have consumed during the binge (see bingeing). Some of the major methods of purging include self-induced vomiting, subjecting oneself to excessive amounts of exercise.


 * Thin-Ideal Internalization-** The demand that one forces on oneself to meet the weight component of attractiveness, which in Western cultures emphasizes thinness. It is specifically the emphasis on thinness that is believed to increase eating disorder risk.


 * “Universal” Standards of Beauty-** Traits that men of most cultures look for in women. These traits include youth, face/body symmetry, clear skin, “hour glass” figure (at any body weight), and feminine facial features (large eyes and lips, small chin). These traits are believed to be so important in male attraction to a female because they likely indicate health and fertility. Note that weight is __NOT__ one of these standards- the desired female body weight tends to go directly against the available food supply, and thus depends on culture/ geographic area. For example in areas where food is plentiful, men prefer thin women, while in areas where food is scarce, a higher body weight is considered attractive.