Picture perfect
Last month psychiatrists announced that they are disturbed by the harmful influence of the media on an individuals body image. In a bid to resolve the issue, they called for a new editorial code of conduct that would significantly reduce the promotion of unhealthily thin bodies and stop the glamorisation of eating disorders.
Eating Disorders experts within the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsychs) argued that the media should be promoting a far greater diversity of body shapes and sizes. This would have the effect of increasing a persons body image. In additional to the code, they went further by a) advocating the use of a kite mark that would be used to clearly identify images that had been digitally enhanced and b) launching a forum.
The forum is supported by medical experts, the media industry and politicians. Dr Adrienne Key, a consultant psychiatrist stated that the aim of the forum was to "collaboratively develop an ethical editorial code that realistically addresses the damaging portrayal of eating disorders, raises awareness of unrealistic visual imagery created through airbrushing and digital enhancement, and also addresses the skewed and erroneous content of magazines."
She continued, "eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, are serious mental illnesses. "Although biological and genetic factors play an important role in the development of these disorders, psychological and social factors are also significant".
However, Annabel Brog, editor teen magazine Sugar, told the BBC that the addition of a kite mark on images was impractical because it would be very difficult to know where to draw the line. Many images, she argued, were digitally enhanced to brighten up colours rather than make models appear perfect.
The debate continues....

