In the past 10 years, self-esteem in American women has significantly plummeted. Why is that? Well, let me tell you why...

Every day, women see beautiful models portrayed on billboards, commercials and magazines advertising for popular beauty products or clothing lines. These models aren't realistic. These models don't represent American women. These models raise the beauty standard to the impossible. Usually, they are 5"9 to 6"2 in height, blonde headed, have flawless skin, and are ridiculously slender.

THEN, as if it couldn't get worse, companies Photoshop out their flaws.

Wait- hold up... models have flaws?

Yes, they actually do!

Freckles, cellulite, scars, acne, dry skin, veins, wrinkles, etc. The list goes on forever. The flaws that are edited out are the characteristics that make them REAL (we just don't see these flaws because they are always removed in pictures).

So after all this unnecessary editing, American women compare themselves to these unrealistic "Barbies". Next thing you know, eating disorders, negative body image, depression and other illnesses become the "norm".

“It’s not just that we see these images once, or twice, or even a hundred times. They stay with us and we process them mostly subconsciously”- Jean Kilbourne, media researcher

So let's break it down...

- 42% of girls in grades 1-3 want to be thinner

- 53% of 13-year-old girls are unsatisfied with their bodies

-91% of women are unhappy with their bodies

- 58% of college-aged girls feel pressured to be a certain weight

- 95% of people with eating disorders are between the ages of 12 and 25

You probably can't believe these are actual statistics, but I'm not done yet.

Let me say it a little louder for the people in the back.

- 500% increase in plastic surgery procedures since 1997

-67% of women ages 25 to 45 are trying to lose weight, but 53% of those women are already at a healthy weight

- 33% of 7 to 11-year-olds wear high heels

All of these statistics are caused by the absurdly high beauty standard in America. But here's the catch — America keeps raising the bar, so no one will ever get there. Photoshop is still being used and the models seem to be getting taller and skinnier each time you open a magazine.

Basically, this beauty standard is a constant chase that you don't have to run in or walk in or even be near. You just feel like you need to participate because you don't have all the qualities that America wants you to have.

With that being said, I think there needs to be some light shed on the use of Photoshop and reality of American women's appearance.

Thanks to the music industry and four brave apparel brands, the "norm" is starting to change and the light is starting to be seen.

About 6 years ago, Lady Gaga’s hit “Born This Way” received praise from every corner of America. The lyrics preach to women to embrace who they are and to love themselves. After the release of this song, Lady Gaga launched into a campaign that provoked positive body image and self-esteem to young girls. Lady Gaga defied the odds by revealing her struggle with bulimia and anorexia as a teenager due to stress from societies beauty standards. Since her campaign, Lady Gaga has reportedly gained 25 pounds because it makes her feel beautiful.

“To all the girls that think you’re ugly because you’re not a size 0, you’re the beautiful one. It’s society who’s ugly” — Lady Gaga

More recently, Kendrick Lamar came out with a new hit on March 31 called “HUMBLE”. Kendrick Lamar blew America out of the water with this one. In the second verse, Lamar raps “I'm so fuckin' sick and tired of the Photoshop. Show me somethin' natural like afro on Richard Pryor. Show me somethin' natural like ass with some stretchmark”. Lamar celebrates natural beauty in his song and exclaims how obviously fake Photoshop makes pictures. Kendrick Lamar goes further into this point in the “HUMBLE” music video. At 1:44 in the video, Kendrick Lamar admires a sans makeup African American woman with stretch marks on her body.

Talk about a legit mic drop to beauty standards... Music influencing the beauty and fashion industry seems to just be the start of a new revolution towards improving body image and stopping Photoshop use.

Along with the music industry shining light on this subject, four companies in the United States have recently decided to cut out Photoshop completely from their advertisements. These companies have received boundless praise from women and men all over the world.

Why is it so revolutionary when a company decides to stop using Photoshop? Because it's REAL.

That’s why companies like Modcloth, Seventeen Magazine, Aerie, and Darling Magazine stopped including altered and Photoshoped images of models in their advertisements. In a statement, Jenny Altman, an Aerie representative commented on the reason why Aerie stopped Photoshopping their advertisements; “these are still models, they’re gorgeous... they just look a little more like the rest of us. We hope by embracing this that girls everywhere will start to embrace their own beauty”.

I mean, what the heck is going through every other brands head when they use Photoshop? Because whatever it is, their priorities are way off.

Hopefully, the façade on society beauty standards will fade away and American women’s body image will regain the confidence it once had before, illnesses stemming from self-image negativity will disappear and there will be no such thing as a beauty standard.

And I can’t wait for the day that every woman feels comfortable in her own skin and I think that when that day comes, our society will be the most beautiful it ever has been.

Citation:

http://www.latimes.com/style/la-igw-ywca19-2008aug...

https://www.buzzfeed.com/juliegerstein/the-33-wors...

https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-abou...

http://www.spin.com/2012/09/lady-gaga-weight-gain-...

http://people.com/bodies/kendrick-lamar-humble-mus...

https://groundswell.org/4-companies-that-refuse-to...