The Psychological Basis of Anorexia Nervosa, Part III

Culture and the Media

In 1940 Peruvian-born artist Alberto Vargas began drawing pinups for Esquire, "a magazine catering to affluent men with a taste for stylish clothes and beautiful women"¹. His pictures of gravity-defying, impossibly gorgeous females inspired fantasies in generations of American G.I.'s². Along with George Petty's classic "Memphis Belle," "Varga Girls" appeared on airplane noses and tattooed forearms³. When Vargas started working for Playboy in the 1960's, his work became familiar to civilians around the world⁴.

Vargas's drawings are not just admired by men. Marina Elena Buszek, an art doctoral student at the University of Kansas, considers them feminist icons⁵. To read a fascinating article by Buszek featuring drawings by Vargas and Petty, click here.In 1998, the value of 300 pinup pieces at the University's Spencer Museum - half of them by Vargas- were worth an estimated $10-$20 million⁶.

At some point, cartoonish fantasies became real-life goals for millions of girls and women. Here the influence of the media and popular culture figure prominently.

From a very early age, girls are socialized into believing that thin is "in." Have you ever seen a voluptuous Barbie doll? A life-sized woman with Barbie's shape would have an 18-inch waist and 33-inch hips⁷ - hardly realistic proportions. A 1991 study by Dr. Timothy Brewerton at the Medical University of South Carolina of 3,100 fifth through eighth-grade students found that 40 percent believed they were fat when only 20 percent were actually overweight⁸. In addition, 42.6 percent of the girls said that they had dieted⁹.

In addition to peers, pressure to lose weight comes from schools and coaches. Female gymnasts, in particular, are under enormous pressure to maintain unnaturally low weights. Cheerleaders may experience similar coercion.

A particularly frightening story was reported in 1991 by The Boston Globe. A five-foot six and a half-inch, 130 pound woman was cut from the University of Connecticut's cheerleading squad for being overweight¹⁰. Originally 147 pounds, she resorted to diuretics and laxatives¹¹. When told that she was still too heavy to cheerlead at 130, she resorted to a lettuce and water diet for 5 days¹². When her weight had dropped to 123, she was allowed to perform¹³. Her victory, however, was short-lived. She developed strep throat, was described by her mother as "hysterical, sick, and unhappy," and was again cut from the squad¹⁴.

Under pressure from the Connecticut Human Rights and Opportunities Commission, the University dropped its weight requirement for female cheerleaders¹⁵. Interestingly, there never was one for males ¹⁶.