Every day we are bombarded with media images of super skinny, gorgeous and often half-naked women. We are constantly barraged by society’s ideal form, and even the media recognizes what they are doing. Magazines now include in their pages how a person should be proud of their body and that one should not aspire to look like people they see on television. Recently, we have seen what some may call a “Real Girl’s Revolution,” in which bodies of all sizes are celebrated.

I have a slight problem with this. While I do advocate being proud of who you are and representing all types of bodies, I do not understand the epidemic of “Body Acceptance” that seems to be taking over. There seems to be a message declaring that everyone one is beautiful – from the 5' 4, 100-pound super model to the 5' 6, 300-pound waitress. I agree that everyone is beautiful in their own way and happy in their own skin, but what has happened to promoting a healthy body image, regardless of size or weight?

Sure, the super skinny girl might be drop dead gorgeous, but is she healthy? No one knows a person's struggles. She may have gotten that figure from anorexia. It is my strong belief that the media should promote a healthy body, regardless of body size or shape. While the idea of body acceptance is great, can it be harmful? Is it causing those that are unhealthy to become complacent? We should accept ourselves, but we should never settle for anything less than our health, which means something different to every woman.

A healthy and happy woman is stunning.

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MADISON KANE

Madison Kane is an 18-year-old English and Theater major. Her hobbies other than writing include blogging and watching My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic with her boyfriend. To learn more about her college exploits visit Four Shattered Stars: Finding Philadelphia. She lives in Loudoun.